Tax Planning & Optimization

Tax planning is legal and encouraged by HMRC when it involves using legitimate allowances, reliefs, and exemptions. Tax planning is about structuring your finances and business to pay the right amount of tax—no more, no less—while using all the allowances and reliefs you're entitled to. Tax planning is legal and encouraged by HMRC when it involves using legitimate allowances, reliefs, and exemptions (gov.uk tax planning). Pension contributions receive tax relief at your marginal rate, making pensions one of the most tax-efficient ways to save for retirement. ISAs allow you to invest up to £20,000 per year tax-free, with no income tax or capital gains tax on returns.

The problem is most people don't understand what legitimate tax planning involves. They think tax planning is dodgy or illegal, don't know what allowances they can claim, or miss opportunities to reduce tax legally. That causes problems—overpaid tax from not using available reliefs, missed opportunities for tax-efficient savings, and confusion about what's legal versus what's tax avoidance.

We handle tax planning and optimization for individuals and businesses: tax review (reviewing your current tax position and identifying opportunities), allowance optimization (ensuring you claim all available allowances and reliefs), pension planning (maximizing pension contributions for tax relief), ISA planning (using ISAs for tax-free savings and investments), business tax planning (optimizing business structure, expenses, and reliefs for Corporation Tax efficiency), and tax-efficient investments (exploring tax-efficient investment vehicles like VCTs or EIS). Whether you're in Medway wanting to reduce your tax bill legally, in Maidstone with a business needing tax planning, or in Canterbury looking to optimize your tax position, we'll handle your tax planning that works. No dodgy schemes, no tax avoidance—just legitimate tax efficiency that saves you money within the rules.

What this helps you do (fast)

• Reduce your tax bill legally — Use all available allowances, reliefs, and exemptions to minimize tax within legal limits. Legitimate tax planning saves you money without risk.
• Maximize tax-efficient savings — Use pensions, ISAs, and other tax-efficient vehicles to build wealth with less tax. Tax-efficient savings grow faster with less tax drag.
• Claim all available allowances — Ensure you're claiming personal allowances, marriage allowance, capital allowances, and other reliefs you're entitled to. Missing allowances means overpaying tax.
• Optimize business tax position — Structure your business finances to minimize Corporation Tax legally through expenses, allowances, and reliefs. Business tax planning saves significant amounts.
• Plan for future tax efficiency — Consider how timing income, expenses, and disposals can optimize your tax position over time. Forward planning maximizes tax efficiency.
• Understand what's legal — Learn the difference between legitimate tax planning and prohibited tax avoidance. Understanding the rules helps you make informed decisions.

How it works

Step-by-step process for tax planning and optimization:

1. Discovery call — We chat about your situation: your income sources, business structure, current tax position, financial goals, risk appetite, and what you want to achieve.
2. Current tax position review — We review where you are now:
   • Income analysis — Review all income sources (employment, self-employment, property, investments, pensions, etc.)
   • Tax liability calculation — Calculate current tax liability (Income Tax, National Insurance, Corporation Tax if applicable)
   • Allowance and relief review — Check what allowances and reliefs you're currently claiming
   • Gap analysis — Identify missed opportunities or unclaimed allowances
   • Tax efficiency assessment — Review current tax efficiency and identify areas for improvement
   Current position review helps us understand where you are and what opportunities exist.
3. Tax planning strategy development — We develop a tailored tax planning strategy:
   • Personal allowances — Ensure you're using personal allowance, marriage allowance, and other personal reliefs efficiently
   • Pension planning — Review pension contributions and tax relief opportunities (maximizing contributions within limits)
   • ISA planning — Review ISA usage and opportunities for tax-free savings and investments
   • Business structure — Review business structure and whether changes could improve tax efficiency (sole trader vs limited company, etc.)
   • Expense optimization — Review business expenses and capital allowances to ensure maximum legitimate claims
   • Tax-efficient investments — Explore tax-efficient investment vehicles (VCTs, EIS, SEIS) if appropriate
   Strategy development creates a tailored plan to optimize your tax position legally.
4. Implementation support — We help you implement the strategy:
   • Action plan — Create a clear action plan with specific steps and deadlines
   • Documentation — Help gather documentation needed for claims (expense receipts, pension statements, etc.)
   • Applications — Assist with applications for reliefs or allowances if needed
   • Timing advice — Advise on timing of income, expenses, or disposals to optimize tax position
   • Ongoing support — Provide ongoing support as you implement the strategy
   Implementation support ensures the strategy is put into practice effectively.
5. Review and monitoring — We review progress and adjust as needed:
   • Regular reviews — Schedule regular reviews to monitor progress and adjust strategy
   • Tax year planning — Review tax position before year-end to optimize use of allowances and reliefs
   • Legislative changes — Monitor tax law changes and adjust strategy accordingly
   • Performance tracking — Track tax savings and efficiency improvements
   • Strategy refinement — Refine strategy based on results and changing circumstances
   Review and monitoring ensures the strategy continues to work and adapts to changes.

We handle all aspects of tax planning and optimization. The key is understanding your current position, identifying legitimate opportunities, developing a tailored strategy, implementing it effectively, and reviewing regularly, so you optimize your tax position within legal limits.

Costs & timelines

Pricing factors:

• Complexity of situation — Simple situations (single income source, straightforward tax) cost less than complex situations (multiple income sources, business structures, investments)
• Scope of planning — Comprehensive tax planning covering all aspects costs more than focused planning on specific areas
• Ongoing support — If you want ongoing tax planning support (regular reviews, year-end planning), this adds to the cost
• Business vs personal — Business tax planning (Corporation Tax, business structure) may cost more than personal tax planning
• Implementation complexity — If strategy implementation requires complex changes (business restructuring, investment arrangements), this affects pricing

Commonly reported ranges by local providers:

• Personal tax planning review: £200–£500 for a one-off review of personal tax position and basic planning advice
• Comprehensive tax planning: £500–£1,500 for comprehensive tax planning covering all aspects (personal, business, investments)
• Business tax planning: £400–£1,200 for business tax planning (Corporation Tax optimization, business structure, expenses, allowances)
• Ongoing tax planning support: £300–£800 per year for ongoing tax planning support (quarterly reviews, year-end planning, strategy monitoring)
• Pension and ISA planning: £150–£400 for focused planning on pensions, ISAs, and tax-efficient savings

Why tax planning and optimization costs what it does:

• Tax position review requires detailed analysis of income, expenses, allowances, and current tax liability
• Strategy development requires understanding tax rules, allowances, reliefs, and how they apply to your situation
• Implementation support requires helping you take action, gather documentation, and make changes
• Review and monitoring requires ongoing attention to your tax position and legislative changes
• Professional expertise ensures strategies are legitimate, effective, and compliant with HMRC requirements

Timeline: A tax planning review typically takes 1-2 weeks from when we receive all your information. Strategy development may take 2-3 weeks depending on complexity. Implementation can happen immediately for some strategies (ISA contributions, expense claims) or take longer for complex changes (business restructuring). Ongoing reviews are typically quarterly or annually, with year-end planning in March/April before the tax year ends.

Payment: Tax planning services are typically paid upfront or in installments depending on scope. Ongoing tax planning support is usually billed annually or quarterly. We'll discuss payment options when we understand your needs.

No hidden fees. Tax planning price includes review, strategy development, initial implementation support, and one follow-up review. Ongoing support, complex implementation, or additional reviews are separate if you want them.

Kent (UK) focus

We work with people and businesses across Kent who want to optimize their tax position: people in Medway wanting to reduce personal tax, businesses in Maidstone needing Corporation Tax planning, and people in Canterbury looking to maximize tax-efficient savings.

Kent taxpayers and businesses face the same tax rules as everyone else—but when you get proper tax planning help, you use all available allowances and reliefs, structure finances efficiently, and plan ahead to minimize tax. That's what helps Kent taxpayers and businesses save money on tax legally and build wealth more efficiently.

Common Kent tax planning scenarios:

• Personal tax planning — Individuals wanting to reduce Income Tax through allowances, pensions, and ISAs
• Business tax planning — Businesses wanting to minimize Corporation Tax through expenses, allowances, and reliefs
• Property investors — Property investors wanting to optimize tax on rental income and capital gains
• Company directors — Directors wanting to optimize salary and dividend mix for tax efficiency
• High earners — High earners wanting to maximize pension contributions and tax relief

Kent business market context:

• Many Kent businesses are SMEs that can benefit from tax planning (expenses, capital allowances, R&D relief)
• Proper tax planning helps Kent businesses minimize Corporation Tax and reinvest savings in growth
• Personal tax planning helps Kent individuals reduce tax and build wealth more efficiently
• Tax-efficient savings (pensions, ISAs) help Kent taxpayers prepare for retirement and financial goals

Remote-first, Kent-focused. We don't need to meet in person (though we can if you prefer), and we understand what Kent taxpayers and businesses are dealing with. Tax planning, allowance optimization, business structure, pension planning—we'll handle your tax planning that saves you money within the rules.

FAQs