In the Spring 2021 budget, the Chancellor announced that there would be eight “Freeports” in England with generous tax breaks to encourage businesses to set up and invest in those areas. The devolved governments will also be announcing locations in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland in due course.

The proposed locations of the freeports can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/freeports#where-are-they-located

New Year Tax Planning Ideas

At this time of year, we think about New Year’s resolutions. It is also a good time to start planning your tax affairs before the end of the tax year on 5th April 2022.

An obvious tax planning point would be to maximize your ISA allowances for the 2021/22 tax year (still £20,000 each).

You might also want to consider increasing your pension savings before 5th April 2022 as the unused annual pension allowance is lost after three years. For those looking to do some inheritance tax planning, it would be a good time to review (or make) your Will.