What Accountants Can Expect For The 2023/24 Tax Year
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Mercia Group 
15 December 2022 14:56
Many businesses will be planning for the end of the 2022/23 tax year on 5 April 2023 and considering the impact of measures set to take effect in the new tax year. Here we outline the key measures that will take effect from April 2023.
On this page:
Reduction in the Dividend Allowance
Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme
National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage uprating
Income tax rates
At the Mini Budget on 23 September 2022 the government announced a plan to abolish the 45% additional rate of income tax from April 2023. It was announced on 3 October 2022 that the government would not proceed with this plan.
From 6 April 2023, the point at which individuals pay the additional rate will be lowered from £150,000 to £125,140. The additional rate for non-savings and non-dividend income will apply to taxpayers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The additional rate for savings and dividend income will apply to the whole of the UK.
The income tax personal allowance and higher rate threshold were already fixed at their current levels until April 2026 and will now be maintained for an additional two years until April 2028. They will be £12,570 and £50,270 respectively.
Reduction in the Dividend Allowance
The government will reduce the Dividend Allowance from £2,000 to £1,000 from April 2023 and to £500 from April 2024.
Additionally, from April 2023, the rates of taxation on dividend income will remain as follows:
- the dividend ordinary rate - 8.75%
- the dividend upper rate - 33.75%
- the dividend additional rate - 39.35%.
As corporation tax due on directors’ overdrawn loan accounts is paid at the dividend upper rate, this will also remain at 33.75%.
Capital gains
The government has announced that the capital gains tax annual exempt amount will be reduced from £12,300 to £6,000 from April 2023 and to £3,000 from April 2024.
Research and Development
For expenditure on or after 1 April 2023, the Research and Development Expenditure Credit (RDEC) rate will increase from 13% to 20% but the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) additional deduction will decrease from 130% to 86% and the SME credit rate will decrease from 14.5% to 10%.
Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme
From April 2023, companies will be able to raise up to £250,000 of Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) investment, a two-thirds increase. To enable more companies to use SEIS, the gross asset limit will be increased to £350,000 and the age limit from two to three years. To support these increases, the annual investor limit will be doubled to £200,000.
Vehicles
From 6 April 2023, car and van fuel benefits and the van benefit charge will increase in line with inflation.
National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage uprating
The government will increase the National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) from 1 April 2023. The rates will be as follows:
- £10.42 an hour for those aged 23 and over
- £10.18 an hour for workers aged 21-22
- £7.49 an hour for 18–20-year-olds
- £5.28 for 16-17-year-olds
- £5.28 an hour for apprentices.
Energy
From 1 January 2023, the Energy Profits Levy will be increased to 35% and extended to the end of March 2028 and a new, temporary 45% Electricity Generator Levy will be applied on the extraordinary returns being made by electricity generators.
The Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) will be maintained through the winter, limiting typical energy bills to £2,500 per year. From April 2023 the EPG will rise to £3,000.
Whatever 2023 has in store, Mercia will be on hand to keep your clients up to date.
