Category: SME Finance Tips

Tax-Saving Tips for Small Businesses

11/2/2025

5 Smart Tax-Saving Strategies for UK Small Businesses in 2025

Running a small business comes with its share of challenges, but optimising your tax liabilities doesn’t have to be one of them. Here are five practical ways to legally reduce your tax bill and improve your cash flow.

1. Claim All Allowable Expenses Ensure you're claiming all eligible expenses, including:

Office costs (utilities, rent, software subscriptions)
Travel expenses (mileage, public transport, overnight stays)
Professional services (accountants, legal fees)

2. Take Advantage of the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA)

The AIA remains at £1 million, allowing businesses to deduct 100% of qualifying capital expenditures.

3. Make Pension Contributions

Contributions up to £60,000 (previously £40,000) benefit from full tax relief.

4. Pay Yourself Tax-Efficiently

Salary + Dividend Strategy: Take a £12,570 salary to maximise personal allowance and withdraw dividends up to £50,270 at a lower tax rate.

5. Use R&D Tax Credits

SME tax relief remains at 86% deduction, with a payable credit rate of 10%.

These strategies can lead to significant tax savings. If you’d like tailored advice on how to implement them, UMC Accountants is here to help.

Common Accounting Mistakes Small Businesses Make (And How to Fix Them)

31/1/2025

4 Costly Accounting Mistakes Small Businesses Must Avoid

Accounting mistakes can cost businesses thousands. Here are the top errors and how to prevent them.

Common Mistakes:

Not separating personal and business finances.
Missing VAT deadlines.
Failing to track cash flow.
Misclassifying contractors vs employees.

Need an expert review of your accounts? UMC Accountants is here to help.

Top 5 Tax Reliefs That Small Businesses Often Miss

1/11/2024

5 Overlooked Tax Reliefs That Could Save Your Business Thousands

Many small businesses miss out on valuable tax reliefs that could significantly reduce their tax liabilities.

Key Reliefs:

R&D Tax Credits - Refunds for innovative businesses.
Employment Allowance - Reduces National Insurance contributions by up to £5,000.
Business Asset Disposal Relief - Lower CGT rates for business sales.
Annual Investment Allowance - Full deductions on plant and machinery.
Super Deduction (Final Year) - 130% tax relief on investments ending April 2024.

Check if your business qualifies for these reliefs. Contact UMC Accountants to maximise savings.

How a Startup Benefited from R&D Tax Credits

5/9/2024

Case Study: How an AI Startup Claimed £50,000 in R&D Tax Relief

An AI-focused start-up was unaware of the R&D Tax Credit Scheme. Here’s how we helped them claim back £50,000.

Steps Taken:

Identified qualifying R&D expenditures.
Prepared a detailed claim report for HMRC.
Secured a successful refund within 8 weeks.

If your business conducts R&D, you could claim significant relief. Contact UMC Accountants.

'''That is exactly what I want! Wonderful! Many thanks''
Isabella I Tai Chi Wellness

''I would highly recommend UMC for their quality of work''
S Pither I NPIT

''They are not just my accountants, they are also my friend's accountants''
I Campbell I MLCE

Copyright @ 2012 United Metropolitan Consulting Ltd.
All Rights Reserved.
Company No. 公司注册号 07817089
The practice is authorised and regulated by Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the United Kingdom