There is (of course) speculation about what the Chancellor will announce in terms of tax changes as part of his Spring Budget scheduled for 3 March. Throughout the pandemic there has been speculation about how the Treasury will move to balance the books after massively increased government borrowing to fund the pandemic response.

We often come across partnerships in the context of farming families. These are usually general partnerships, although occasionally they are Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs). The benefit of an LLP is that it limits the personal lability of the partners; however LLPs require more administration than general partnerships (for example annual accounts must be submitted to Companies House). An LLP might be particularly appropriate where trustees act as partners. 

Alexander Dickinson, a partner at law firm Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD), has been recognised in the 2021 eprivateclient 50 Most Influential list published this week (1 February).

If you registered a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) or an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2017 you are eligible for a refund of part of the registration fee from the Office of the Public Guardian (the OPG). Applications for a refund of fees must be made by 1 February 2021.

The recently published Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) report on capital gains tax (CGT) went a lot further than simply proposing an increase in CGT rates. While it's important not to read too much into the report, rumours of changes to the CGT regime have been around for some time now. CGT raises only around £8bn in tax each year - compared to £180bn from income tax – but the present government's commitment not to raise income tax, National Insurance contributions or VAT definitely puts CGT in the firing line.

The main recommendations from the OTS are:

Most people don't need to concern themselves with paying capital gains tax (CGT) when they sell their home. This is because Principal Private Residence Relief (known as PPR), which applies to the disposal of a person's only or main residence, generally means that any gain in the value of their home is fully exempt from CGT.