VAT numbers
How to check a VAT numberCheck a UK or EU supplier’s VAT number before you pay, and what the result tells you.UK and EU VAT number formatsWhat a VAT number looks like in the UK, Northern Ireland and each EU country.What to do if a supplier’s VAT number isn’t validThe usual reasons, what to ask the supplier, and whether you can reclaim the VAT.
IBANs and bank details
IBAN format by countryThe length and layout of an IBAN in every country that uses them, from the SWIFT IBAN Registry.How to find your IBANWhere UK banks show your IBAN, and what to give someone paying you from abroad.IBAN, sort code and account number: the differenceHow the three fit together, and which one to give for a UK or international payment.
Invoices
What a UK invoice must includeThe details every invoice needs, and what sole traders, limited companies and VAT-registered businesses add.VAT invoices: full, simplified and reverse chargeWhich kind of VAT invoice to issue, and what each one must show.How to number your invoicesWhat HMRC means by a unique sequential number, and simple schemes that work.
Corporation tax
Corporation tax rates and marginal relief 2026/27The 19% and 25% rates, the £50,000 and £250,000 limits, and how marginal relief is worked out.Associated companies explainedWhich companies count as associated, and how they cut your corporation tax limits.Corporation tax payment and filing datesWhen to pay and file, how long periods work, and when large companies pay in instalments.
Dividend tax
Dividend tax rates 2026/27The new dividend rates from April 2026, the £500 allowance, and how dividends sit on top of other income.Salary or dividends: what directors should takeWhy £12,570 usually wins, and when £5,000 or a bigger salary is better.How dividends are taxed in ScotlandWhy Scottish taxpayers pay UK dividend rates, and how the bands fit together.
Salary sacrifice
Salary sacrifice explainedHow giving up salary for a pension, car or bike saves tax and National Insurance, and the limits.Electric car benefit-in-kind rates to 2030The company car percentages for electric cars and plug-in hybrids, year by year.The April 2029 pension salary sacrifice capWhat the £2,000 National Insurance cap on pension sacrifice changes, and for whom.
Inheritance tax
Inheritance tax bands and allowances 2026/27The nil-rate band, the residence band and its taper, transfers from a spouse, and the 36% rate.The 7-year gift rule explainedWhich gifts count, the exemptions, and how taper relief cuts the tax.Pensions and inheritance tax from April 2027How unused pensions come into the estate, who pays, and what stays exempt.
Loans
How early loan settlement works in the UKYour right to pay off a loan early, how the settlement figure is worked out, and when the lender can charge.APR explainedWhat the APR includes, why the monthly rate isn’t APR ÷ 12, and what “representative” means.Overpaying a loan: shorter term or lower paymentsHow overpayments cut the interest you pay, which option saves more, and the £8,000 rule.
Credit cards
How credit card minimum payments workHow UK card minimums are set, why paying only the minimum takes so long, and what helps.Balance transfers explainedHow 0% balance transfers and their fees work, and how to clear the balance before the deal ends.Persistent credit card debt: what your provider must doThe FCA’s 18-month and 36-month rules, and where to get free help.
Car finance
PCP vs HP explainedHow personal contract purchase and hire purchase differ in payments, interest and ownership.Voluntary termination: your rightsHanding a financed car back once you’ve paid half, and what you may still owe.How a PCP final payment is setWhat the final payment (balloon) is, how lenders set it, and your choices at the end.Car finance compensation: where the FCA scheme standsWho the FCA’s car finance redress scheme covers, what’s on hold, and how to complain for free.