Money saving matters and Crystal Ball Gazing

Businesswomen were left with plenty of food for thought and a renewed determination to review their finances, after professionals encouraged them to get tax-savvy!

Experts from accountancy firm Wright Vigar in Lincoln gave members of Business Women’s Link (BWL) (Lincolnshire) lots to mull over, after updating them on the latest legislation and sharing ways in which they could make their money work harder.

Pam said: “People need to check their tax codes and to look at claiming any reliefs and allowances which they might be missing out on.

“Married couples and civil partners might think about moving assets from one to the other, to save tax. A manager earning more than £100,000 could be paying the 60 per cent tax rate, so they might choose to increase their pension contributions to take themselves out of that bracket.”

Julia said there are many attractive tax-efficient options for individuals with spare cash, from popular savings schemes to business angel-style investments.

“On the savings front, ISAs just got NISA. Since July there has been a subscription limit of £15,000 and you can now have any combination of cash and stocks and shares products,” she said.

“Investors interested in the Enterprise Investment Scheme can now get relief of up to £300,000 in the year they invest (i.e. 30 per cent of a maximum investment of £1 million).

“Similarly, the SEIS version allows tax relief of up to £50,000 in the year of investment (50 per cent of a maximum of £100,000).”

Pam and Julia were asked many questions, and with the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement due on December 3, they also did a spot of “crystal ball gazing” and attempted to predict what might be on the horizon.

BWL members and guests were also challenged to come up with some bright ideas for the Chancellor and the Beneficial Trust & Will Company’s Head of Operations, Amy Peters, won a bottle of wine for hers.

Amy suggested that there should be an increase in income tax rates for store-based Santa’s who were dressed in “inferior quality red suits and who sported “low grade white beards!”