Accountants in Southgate Green

Changing accountant mid-year is routine: you authorise the new firm, we write a professional clearance letter to the old one, records transfer, and HMRC authorisation moves online. Clients are usually surprised the whole thing needs almost nothing from them.

From April 2026, self-employed people and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 move onto Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: digital records and quarterly updates to HMRC, not one annual return. The year before is the right time to get bookkeeping into shape.

Filing early doesn't mean paying early: submit a return in May and the tax is still not due until the usual dates. Early filing buys certainty, refund speed and time to arrange payment — it costs nothing.

VAT registration becomes compulsory once your taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months passes £90,000 — and "rolling" is the word that catches people, because it's not your accounting year. Businesses in Southgate Green growing towards that line should be watching it monthly.

Subcontractors under the Construction Industry Scheme have 20% deducted at source — often more than their final tax bill once expenses and the personal allowance are counted. That's why CIS refunds are so common: the average claim is well into four figures, but only if the deduction statements are all gathered.

Directors paying themselves a salary still need a PAYE scheme and RTI submissions, even in a one-person company. It's a five-minute monthly task with software — and a recurring penalty generator without it.

Scam "HMRC" messages outnumber real ones — HMRC doesn't demand payment by gift card or threaten arrest by text. Real letters have reference numbers that we can verify directly with HMRC before anyone responds.

Timing disposals across tax years, using losses properly, and the spousal transfer rules can all legitimately reduce capital gains bills — but only before the sale. CGT planning after completion is just arithmetic.