There are now less than two months until the end of the tax year, so Laura Suter, head of personal finance at AJ Bell, gives her guide to what people need to consider before the 5 April deadline
1. Maximise free government money
Whether it’s your pension, your Lifetime ISA or ensuring you claim tax breaks that you are eligible for, it’s important to get as much free government cash as you are entitled to.
Pensions benefit from tax relief at 20% for basic rate taxpayers, but higher and additional rate payers can reclaim an additional 20% or 25% tax relief respectively through their tax return. That means for a basic rate taxpayer every £1 in your pension only costs you 80p and for a higher rate taxpayer every £1 in your pension only costs you 60p.
Anyone using a Lifetime ISA can also get up to £1,000 of free money from the government each year, if you put in the maximum £4,000 contribution, bearing in mind that the age limit to open a Lifetime ISA is 39 years.
