Moulds Accountants

28/04/2026

One of the most common questions we get is how can people legitimately reduce their tax bill.

Here's a few easy things to check you are claiming to ensure you only pay the tax you have to:

➡️ office supplies
➡️ business travel
➡️ professional subscriptions
➡️ home office costs (for remote workers, not if you choose to do a bit of WFH)

People tend to want to claim everything but you need to be careful as HMRC only allows you to claim things that are exclusively for the trade you do.

Anything with 'dual purpose' i.e. you use it for both work and business isn't typically allowed e.g. nice clothes for client meetings, an apple watch etc.

It goes without saying that you need to keep good records in case HMRC asks to see them but as long as you are claiming costs genuinely incurred for your business you will be able to reduce your tax bill.

20/02/2026

Making Tax Digital starts in April for any sole traders or landlords earning over £50k (before expenses are deducted).

What does this mean for you?

➡️ keeping digital records (no more boxes of paper invoices and receipts)

➡️ filing quarterly income & expenses returns with HMRC, instead of the once a year self assessment tax return

➡️ use of software to submit returns is mandatory, so you will need to use something like Xero, FreeAgent or QuickBooks.

It's a huge change for people who have always filed a self assessment return once a year so it's important to get prepared early.

HMRC should write to you if you are affected but if you're unsure then get in touch and we can talk you through what you need to do.

03/11/2025

Why is my VAT bill so high?!

A question we hear a lot but shortly followed by 'I don't have time to give you all the invoices, I'm really busy'.

The trouble with being too busy to keep on top of your business invoices is that you can't claim all the VAT you're entitled to, so your VAT bill ends up being higher than it otherwise might be.

Keep on top of your invoices so you can reclaim VAT, otherwise you might find you're paying out more than you need to.

Here's a few tips which might help:

✔️ Remember to always request a VAT receipt when buying things for your business
✔️ Scan your receipts in straight away so you don't have to keep lots of paperwork
✔️ Get organised, make sure you set aside an hour a week to keep on top of your admin

29/09/2025

If you're looking to get a good understanding of your numbers then you need more than just your accounts at the end of the year.

When you understand the numbers you make better decisions about what to spend your time, energy and money on.

We can help you understand the numbers so you feel more in control.

Get in touch to arrange a call to discuss your specific situation and to see how we can help

At Moulds Accountants, we work with established businesses to get clarity over the important numbers so they can improve cashflow and profitability.

26/09/2025

We now know the date of the next Budget is 26th November 2025.

There are, as always, lots of rumours around what might be included with a lot of business owners worried about taxes increasing further.

We won't know until the day what the Chancellor is going to deliver but it's ever clear that businesses need to be as resilient as possible.

Things to check to make sure your business is in good health include:

➡️ you are proactively chasing invoices and getting paid on time
➡️ you've minimised or cut any non-essential spending
➡️ you've reviewed your pricing and increased prices where you needed to
➡️ you've got a good spread of customers instead of being reliant on one or two big ones

It always pays to be on top of the numbers 🤓

24/09/2025

Keep an eye on the small expenses, they soon add up!

Keeping control over your expenses means you don't end up giving away your profits accidentally.

Small expenses add up, especially subscriptions so keep them under review and cancel anything you don't need or use in the business anymore.

17/09/2025

A question we hear a lot is "why have we always got a VAT bill but never seem to have any money?!"

A lot of businesses don't make it a habit to set aside cash for tax and VAT bills, so when the payment deadline comes round they don't have the money to pay the bill.

It's a good habit to set aside the VAT element of your sales invoice into a business savings account. You'll build up a pot of cash that you can use to pay the VAT bill on time, avoiding penalties and interest.

If cash is tight overall then make sure you review all your expenses to see what you can reduce, and check your own drawings out of the business. You might be taking out more money than the business can afford.

Remember, you have to pay HMRC on time to avoid expensive penalties so getting into good habits and saving cash where you can helps to minimise sleepless nights over paying the VAT return.

15/09/2025

Profit is not the same as cash but the difference isn't always understood by business owners.

We often get asked 'if I've made £100k profit why don't I have that amount sat in my bank account?'.

It's a common question and there are a few reasons why. Read our blog to find out a bit more https://www.mouldsandco.com/blog-page/profit-is-not-the-same-as-cash/

If I make £100k profit, why dont I have £100k cash in the bank? Why profit is not the same as cash comes up a lot in business.

29/08/2025

Business mileage. What is it and how do you claim it?

When you use your personal vehicle for business purposes you are entitled to claim business mileage as an expense.

If you use your vehicle for both business and private miles you will only be able to claim for the actual business miles done, which means you need to record your trips.

HMRC consider business travel to be travel between your permanent place of work and temporary place e.g. travel to visit a client. One thing to note is that if you work from an office you can't count commuting to and from work as a business trip.

You can claim the first 10,000 miles at 45p per mile and 25p per mile thereafter (there are different rates for bikes).

Records you need to keep include:

⭐ the date of the trips
⭐ the start and end address of those trips, including postcodes
⭐ the distance travelled

You can keep the records manually if you choose or, if you do lots of business mileage, there are specific app's you can use to record mileage which might save you a lot of time.

HMRC can ask for the mileage records of any claims you make so ensure you keep the records.

22/08/2025

Do you still use paper records in your business?

With Making Tax Digital coming in April 2026 for landlords and the self-employed earning over £50,000 income a year, now is the time to go digital 🤓 .

HMRC is requiring tax payers who fall within the criteria for MTD for Income Tax to keep digital records from April 2026.

This means using software to record all your income and business expenses, and submitting quarterly returns to HMRC.

There are lots of options available to those looking to get set up and ready.

Contact us if you want to talk through what this means for you.