This year, the Easter Bunny - let's call him HMRC - has picked an awkward moment to visit.
Easter Sunday falls on 5 April, the same day as tax year-end, which means your annual basket of tax allowances and a long holiday weekend are landing simultaneously. That leaves fewer working days than usual to act before the deadline, making early planning more important than ever.
And as always, any allowances left uncollected vanish at midnight: no rollover, no second helping, no exceptions.
With that in mind, we've set out the key areas to consider before 5 April. The goal: get everything squared away well before thoughts turn to Easter eggs and hot cross buns.
ISAs remain one of the most straightforward and effective ways of holding savings and investments tax-efficiently - no income tax, no capital gains tax on growth, and an allowance of up to £20,000 per person (£9,000 for Junior ISAs). The catch? Any unused allowance vanishes at midnight on 5 April, never to be seen again.
It's also worth knowing that, in some circumstances, money withdrawn from an ISA can be replaced within the same tax year (subject to your ISA manager's rules), which can help preserve long-term tax efficiency if you've needed to dip in temporarily. Worth a quick check: do you have cash or investments sitting outside an ISA that could be doing a better job in one?
Pensions remain one of the most tax-efficient tools available. The standard annual allowance is £60,000, subject to earnings and tapering, and it may also be possible to use unused allowances from previous tax years.
If your income is creeping into the higher or additional rate tax bands, a pension contribution review before 5 April could be one of the most rewarding things you do this spring.
For investments held outside tax-efficient wrappers, you can realise up to £3,000 of capital gains each tax year without paying capital gains tax. The allowance has shrunk in recent years, but it's still worth using - and easy to let slip by unnoticed.
A quick look at your non-ISA investments before 5 April might well turn up some useful housekeeping.
Tax year-end is also a natural moment to look ahead and think about longer-term estate planning.
Each individual has a £3,000 annual gifting allowance, with any unused amount from the previous year available to carry forward. Smaller gifts of up to £250 per person can also be made without inheritance tax implications - and are often very well received.
For those with surplus income, the exemption for regular gifts out of excess income can be a genuinely valuable relief, provided a pattern of giving is established and records are kept. The HMRC IHT403 form can be used by executors to account for gifts made during a person's lifetime. Completing it as you go, rather than leaving it to be reconstructed later, means the records are accurate and the exemption is easier to evidence if it's ever needed.
Charitable donations can be both impactful and surprisingly tax-efficient.
Gift Aid boosts the value of your gift to the charity, and higher-rate taxpayers may be able to reclaim additional tax through their return. Gifting investments directly to charity is also worth exploring in some circumstances.
If you're already planning to give to charity, it's worth a moment to make sure it's structured in the most efficient way - good for you, and good for whoever benefits.
For some clients, Enterprise Investment Schemes (EIS) and Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) can offer meaningful income tax reliefs. These investments carry higher risk and reduced liquidity, so they're not for everyone - but where the tax liability and risk profile align, they're worth considering.
One firm rule: these decisions benefit from time and thought, not last-minute scrambling.
Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney’s are not strictly a tax year-end topic, but one that deserves a place on the spring checklist all the same. Ensuring your will and any Lasting Powers of Attorney are in place and up to date is one of those tasks that's easy to keep deferring - until it isn't. Consider this your gentle nudge.
Good tax planning doesn't happen by accident, but it also doesn't need to be painful. A review of the areas above before 5 April can result in real tax savings and a much clearer financial picture going into the new year - leaving you free to enjoy Easter weekend with a clear conscience and, we hope, an impressive amount of chocolate.
If you'd like to discuss any of these points, or would welcome a review of your position ahead of tax year-end, please do get in touch with your IQ adviser as soon as possible.
