Course Details

Twenty years ago, using a company could save a small business thousands of pounds in tax every year. But, in more recent years, the scales have tipped: increases in Corporation Tax, Dividend Tax, and Employer’s National Insurance have combined with reductions in National Insurance for the self-employed to make companies steadily less attractive. In this session, we look at whether companies are still worthwhile as a tax planning measure in the current climate, and how to use them most tax efficiently.

 

Topics to be covered will include:

 

• The pros and cons of using a company

• A basic comparison: how companies measure up against sole traders and partnerships

• Making the most of the company: tax efficient profit extraction strategies

• Additional factors to consider: the Child Benefit Charge, Scottish taxpayers, company owners over state pension age or under 21

• Trading companies and property investment companies

 

By attending this session, delegates will be able to advise clients on the pros and cons of using a company, assist them in deciding if this is the right course of action, and help them use the company tax efficiently if they decide to go ahead.

 

The session will be of benefit to general practitioners, tax advisers, accountancy students, business owners, and landlords.

 

Course Level: Intermediate 

CPD Course Speaker

BSc FCA, Author and Presenter

Carl Bayley

Carl Bayley is the author of a series of plain English tax guides designed specifically for the layperson and the non-specialist (available from www.taxcafe.co.uk). His particular speciality is his ability to take the weird, complex, inexplicable world of taxation and set it out in the kind of clear, straightforward language taxpayers themselves can understand. Carl takes the same approach when speaking on taxation, a role he frequently undertakes with great enthusiasm, including his highly acclaimed annual ‘Budget Breakfast’ for the ICAEW. He has spoken on taxation on radio and television, including the BBC’s ‘It’s Your Money’ programme and BBC Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine Show. Carl is a past Chairman of the Tax Faculty of the ICAEW and former member of the Institute’s governing Council and Board. Aside from his tax books, Carl is an avid creative writer. His first novel, Trinity of Souls, was published in 2024, with his second, Destiny of Souls, following in March 2025. When he isn’t working, he takes on the equally taxing challenges of hill walking and horse riding: his Munro tally is now 106 and, while he remains a novice rider, his progress is cantering along nicely. Carl lives in the Scottish Borders, where he enjoys spending time with his partner, Linda.