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For a successful business, you need a viable business idea, the skills to make it work and the funding. Discover whether your idea has what it takes.

Forming your business correctly is essential to ensure you are protected and you comply with the rules. Learn how to set up your business.

Advice on protecting your wellbeing, self-confidence and mental health from the pressures of starting and running a business.

Learn why business planning is an essential exercise if your business is to start and grow successfully, attract funding or target new markets.

It is likely you will need funding to start your business unless you have your own money. Discover some of the main sources of start up funding.

Businesses and individuals must account for and pay various taxes. Understand your tax obligations and how to file, account and pay any taxes you owe.

Businesses are required to comply with a wide range of business laws. We introduce the main rules and regulations you must comply with.

Marketing matters. It drives sales and helps promote your brand and products. Discover how to market your business and reach your target customers.

Some businesses need a high street location whilst others can be run from home. Understand the key factors from cost to location, size to security.

Your employees can your biggest asset. They can also be your biggest challenge. We explain how to recruitment and manage staff successfully.

It is likely your business could not function without some form of IT. Learn how to specify, buy, maintain and secure your business IT.

Few businesses manage the leap from start up to high-growth business. Learn what it takes to scale up and take your business to the next level.

Donut team summarise the main Budget announcements

30 October 2024

The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, announced the Autumn Budget. We summarise the main headlines for businesses and individuals.

Business taxes

  • Corporate Tax Roadmap: The government’s roadmap includes a commitment to: cap Corporation Tax at 25%, to maintain the Small Profits Rate and marginal relief at current rates and thresholds, to maintain full expensing, the Annual Investment Allowance, R&D relief rates, and the Patent Box, providing certainty for businesses.
  • VAT: No changes to rates or registration and de-registration thresholds.
  • VAT: From 1 January 2025, private school fees will be subject to VAT at 20%.
  • Business rates: The small business multiplier will be frozen for 2025/26 at 49.9p. The standard rate multiplier will increase to 55.5p.
  • Business rates: Retail, hospitality and leisure properties will receive 40% relief in 2025/26 (up to £110,000 per business) and from 2026/27 these businesses will benefit from permanently lower business rates.
  • Business rates: Charitable rate relief will be removed from private schools from April 2025.
  • Independent Film Tax credit: From 1 April 2025, UK films with budgets under £15 million and a UK lead writer or director that began filming on or after 1 April 2024 will be able to claim an enhanced 53% rate of Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit.
  • Tax reliefs for theatres, orchestras, museums and galleries: From 1 April 2025, rates will be set at 40% for non-touring productions, and 45% for touring productions and all orchestra productions.
  • Capital allowances: The 100% First Year Allowances (FYA) for qualifying expenditure on zero-emission cars and the 100% FYA for qualifying expenditure on plant or machinery for electric vehicle charge points will be extended for a further year until 2026.

Personal taxes

  • Income tax: The earnings threshold will not be frozen beyond that already promised. From April 2028, the threshold will be increased in line with inflation.
  • Employees' National Insurance contributions: No changes to the threshold or rates. But, from April 2028, the threshold will be increased in line with inflation.
  • Employers’ NICs: The rate will increase by 1.2 percentage points to 15% from April 2025 and the threshold at which secondary Employers’ NICs become payable will be reduced to £5,000.
  • Self-employed National Insurance: No changes.
  • Employment allowance: This will increase from £5,000 to £10,500 from April 2025. The £100,000 threshold will also be removed, meaning the allowance will expand to all eligible employers.
  • Unpaid taxes: The interest charged on late payment of taxes will increase by 1.5 percentage points from April 2025.
  • Non-domiciled taxation: This tax regime will be scrapped from April 2025 and replaced with a new residence scheme. The Temporary Repatriation Facility will be extended from two to three years.
  • Capital Gains Tax: Investors’ Relief will be reduced to £1 million on all disposals made on or after 30 October 2024.
  • Capital Gains Tax: The lower rate will increase from 10% to 18% and the higher rate will increase from 20% to 24% from April 2025.
  • Business asset relief and Investors relief: Both reliefs will increase to 14% from April 2025 and again in April 2026 to 18%, bringing it in line with the lower rate of CGT.
  • Capital Allowances: The 100% first-year allowances for qualifying expenditure on zero-emission cars and plant and machinery for electric vehicle charge points has been extended until 2026.
  • New British ISA: Following consultation, this will be scrapped.
  • Inheritance tax: The current £325,000 nil rate band and £175,000 residence nil rate band will be fixed for a further two years beyond 2028, until April 2030.
  • Inheritance tax: This will be extended to cover unspent pension pots.
  • Inheritance tax: Agricultural Property relief will be extended to land managed under certain environmental agreements.

Duty rates

  • Fuel Duty: Rates of fuel duty have been frozen for 2025/26 and the temporary 5p cut in fuel duty will remain for another year until 22 March 2026.
  • Alcohol Duty: Rates on draft products below 8.5% alcohol will be cut by 1.7% from 1 February 2025.
  • NEW Vaping Products Duty: From 1 October 2026, a new flat-rate duty of £2.20 per 10ml of vaping fluid will be introduced.
  • Tobacco Duty: From 6pm on 30 October, the duty will increase by an equivalent of £2.20 per 100 cigarettes or 50g of tobacco and the tobacco duty escalator will be renewed at RPI+2% on all tobacco products until the end of this Parliament.
  • Air Passenger Duty: APD will be increased by £1 for domestic flights, £2 for those flying economy on short-haul flights and £12 for long-haul flights from 2026/27. The higher rate of APD that applies to private jets will increase by 50% from 2026/27. From then on, all rates of APD will increase in line with forecast RPI.
  • Stamp Duty Land Tax: From 31 October 2024, the Higher Rates for Additional Dwellings will increase by 2 percentage points to 5%. SDLT on the purchase of dwellings costing more than £500,000 by corporate bodies will also be increased by 2 percentage points to 17%.
  • Energy Profits Levy: From 1 November 2024, this will increase by 2 percentage points to 38%, the investment allowance will be abolished, and the rate of decarbonisation allowance will be set at 66%.
  • Soft Drink Industry Levy: From April 2025, this will increase annually to reflect CPI increases.

Other announcements

  • National Living Wage: From April 2025, NLW and National Minimum Wage will both increase. The hourly rates will be: £12.21 for those aged 21 and over; £10.00 for 18-20-year-olds; and the rate for 16-17-year-olds and apprentices in the first year of their apprenticeship will increase to £7.55 an hour. The accommodation offset will also increase to £10.66 per day.
  • Business Tariff Suspensions: These will be extended until June 2026.
  • Industrial strategy: A new green paper has been published this month identifying eight growth-driving sectors, with plans for each to help them thrive.
  • Carbon capture: The government has announced £3.9bn in 2025/26 for the first carbon capture and storage clusters.
  • Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Venture Capital Trust: Both schemes have been extended until 2035.
  • Child benefit reform: The government will not proceed with the reform to base the High Income Child Benefit on household incomes.
  • Employment Rights Bill:There will be a new right to bereavement leave, and paternity and parental leave will become a day one right.
  • State pensions: The triple lock will increase the state pension and pension credit by 4.1% in 2025/26.
  • Bus fare cap: This will be extended until December 2025 at a higher rate of £3.
  • Alcohol Duty Stamps Scheme: This will be abolished from 1 May 2025.