How deep does your tax advice go? (And how easily you could improve on that)

By AdviceBridge

Inheritance Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Income Tax will all fall into conversation when you’re advising clients, but where else does your tax advice take you?

It’s impossible to help your clients build long-term wealth without advising on taxes. Whether you’re seeking ways to mitigate tax costs or strategising for a secure low-tax retirement income, your advice has far-reaching consequences.

But what about the taxes that aren’t directly affected by investments or building wealth? Do you advise on all the tax allowances, or the impact of certain benefits on a client’s tax position?

Reasons you may shy away from giving deep tax advice include:

  • You don’t have the time
  • You’re not regulated to give tax advice
  • It’s too complicated and not worth the hassle
  • Most clients don’t ask about the small tax stuff
  • It’s not profitable.

Many financial advisers and planners find that getting too deeply involved in giving tax advice doesn’t pay.

The amount of research and analysis it would take to advise a client about something like child tax credit just wouldn’t make financial sense for the firm. Not only do tax rules change regularly, but a client may also have a change in circumstances, which sends you back to the drawing board to answer even simple questions.

All of this is completely understandable.

You spend your time focused on the bigger picture

You want to focus on the bigger picture and help your client make those tax savings that will make a difference to their future. Your energy is focused on making sure their investments are tax-efficient and you’re rarely called on to advise on the day-to-day tax stuff.

So, you ignore it.

But you could be missing out on an easy way to add value for your client. And for very little cost, if you go about things the right way.

Because if you could help your clients save on £50 of tax, you may find, on closer inspection, that savings could be even more.

Over a year, these “small” savings can add up to more than £1,000.

And imagine how much your clients would appreciate that sort of real-time advice, not to mention the positive ways it could affect the amount of money they have available to save for their future.

Some financial advisers work with tax advisers

You may already work alongside a tax adviser to give your clients a two-pronged approach to their finances.

Qualified accountants are adept at understanding the constantly changing tax position of individuals, companies and charities. They can be a valuable source of information to help you interpret legislation and ensure your clients are paying the correct taxes.

An accountant is also best placed to spot opportunities for saving.

Or you could implement software to deliver a better service

Personal taxation is highly complex, with many interactions between tax bands and allowances.

The AdviceBridge Tax Optimiser calculator can help you see where your clients could make savings.

Use the AdviceBridge Tax Optimiser for:

Tax allowances

  • Personal Allowance – Calculates tapering for high earners and taper relief
  • Dividend Allowance
  • Savings Allowance – Calculates how much Savings Allowance the client is entitled to
  • Capital Gains Tax Allowance – Has ability to use carry forward loss relief

Pensions Allowances and charges

  • Annual Allowance
    • Taper for high earners
    • Calculation for members of DB schemes
  • Pension Lifetime Allowance charge – if taken as lump sum or moved to drawdown
  • Money Purchase Annual Allowance

Benefits

  • Child Benefit – calculates high earner Child Benefit charge based on the client’s income, not their partner’s, and the impact on effective pension tax relief.

National Insurance

  • Class 1A – employed
  • Class 2 – self-employed
  • Class 4 – self-employed

Inheritance Tax (IHT)

  • Basic IHT calculation for individual and couple
  • Taxation of pensions if death before/after 75, including ability to set the beneficiaries’ tax rates
  • IHT free transfer of ISA to spouse/partner

Tax calculations

  • Non-savings income
  • Savings income (dividends and interest)
  • Capital Gains Tax

Try the AdviceBridge Tax Optimiser

The Tax Optimiser tool is one of a range of simple but effective tools from AdviceBridge. It is incorporated into the full AdviceBridge platform which integrates with existing software, automating your advice journey and significantly improving efficiency for your business.

The simple and meaningful interface creates an engaging experience by allowing your clients to see how altering their finances will affect them now and in retirement.

Use all or any of the tools to help your clients better understand their finances.

Effective illustrations can help you turn prospects into new clients or help existing clients visualise all the financial decisions they need to consider now and at retirement.

The tools and calculators can help show your clients what they need to consider, assist them in avoiding the pitfalls and make the most of their savings with your help.

Get in touch

If you want to find out how AdviceBridge can help you go deeper with your tax advice and engage your clients more, please get in touch. Email hello@advicebridge.com or call us on 020 3925 3850.