Budget surprises

VAT registration limit

Having been frozen at £85,000 since 2017, the VAT registration threshold wasn’t expected to change until at least March 2026. The Chancellor decided otherwise.

With effect from 1 April 2024, the VAT registration threshold has increased to £90,000. Also with effect from 1 April 2024, the threshold for taxable turnover determining whether you can apply for deregistration, has increased from £83,000 to £88,000. For Northern Ireland, the registration and deregistration thresholds for EU acquisitions increased from £85,000 to £90,000, effective from the same date.

In business terms, the VAT registration threshold can be a cliff-edge, especially for predominantly customer-facing businesses, like coffee shops and sandwich outlets. Business performance and profitability can feel comfortable where turnover is just below the VAT registration threshold, but take the step beyond, into the VAT regime, and viability can change considerably.

We are more than happy to help you assess the impact on your business of registration or deregistration — or indeed, any aspect of the VAT rules. If you have any queries, please do get in touch.

What employers need to know

In England, Scotland and Wales, new rules impact the following areas:

Holiday pay and entitlement: irregular hours and part-year workers

Almost everyone classed as a ‘worker’ — a definition going wider than just employees — is legally entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday each year. This includes workers with irregular hours (such as zero-hours contracts) and part-year workers (such as those only working in term time).

For leave years beginning on or after 1 April 2024, new rules apply to these workers, and the government has provided a definition of ‘irregular hours’ and ‘part-year’ to help employers assess which workers are impacted. Points to note are:

• An accrual method to calculate statutory holiday entitlement for these workers: this is calculated as 12.07% of actual hours worked in a pay period. The 12.07% figure is based on the statutory minimum holiday entitlement, but workers may be entitled to more than the minimum, depending on their contract. Annual leave entitlement is capped at 28 days.
• A method to work out how much leave such workers have accrued when they take maternity or family related leave, or are off sick.
• The option for employers to use rolled-up holiday pay (RHP) to calculate holiday pay for these workers. This means employers can choose whether to use RHP, or the pre-existing 52-week reference period method.

The use of RHP isn’t something workers can request: it is at the employer’s discretion, and involves including an additional amount with every payslip to cover holiday pay, rather than paying holiday pay when the worker takes annual leave. Note that RHP is in addition to the worker’s normal payment, which should be at or above minimum wage. RHP for irregular hour and part-year workers should be calculated at 12.07% of total pay in a pay period. Payments of RHP should be clearly marked as separate items on each payslip.

Paternity Leave and Pay, and other family-leave issues

Changes to Paternity Leave and Pay took effect from 6 April 2024, allowing fathers and partners to take leave in non-consecutive blocks, rather than in one block. Leave and pay can now be taken at any point in the first year after the birth or adoption of the child, and a shorter period of notice is required (four weeks) before leave is taken. Note, also, new rules come in which extend redundancy protection for pregnant employees and those returning from family-related leave.

Carer’s leave 

A new right to carer’s leave took effect from 6 April 2024. It’s a day one employment right, and means any employee can take up to one week of unpaid leave, every 12 months, to give, or arrange care for a dependant with a long-term care need. Maximum entitlement is one week in the 12-month period: it is not per dependant. Leave isn’t restricted to caring for family members and can be used for anyone reliant on the employee for care. Employees should request leave in advance, but do not have to do so in writing. No evidence of care needs has to be supplied to the employer.

Right to request flexible working

The right to ask for flexible working as a day one right came into force on 6 April 2024. Having 26 weeks’ continuous service before making a request is no longer needed. It is still only a right to request, not a right to receive, however. Employers must now respond within two months, rather than three. A new Code of Practice, with guidance for employers, has been published by Acas, the arbitration and conciliation service.

Note: none of these changes apply in Northern Ireland.