The existing business
Part 2 of 4
This is the Finance Act 2024 version of this article. It is relevant for candidates sitting the ATX-UK exam in the period 1 June 2025 to 31 March 2026. Candidates sitting ATX-UK after 31 March 2026 should refer to the Finance Act 2025 version of this article (to be published on the ACCA website in 2026).
So far in this article we have reviewed the tax year basis of assessment and trading losses. The remaining parts of this article compare the total tax paid on the profits of a business depending on the business vehicle used, and the cessation of a business.
Total tax – comparison with company
The total tax paid on the profits generated by a business will depend on whether the business is unincorporated or is owned by a company. This is a significant issue and will be considered, together with legal and commercial issues, when deciding on a business vehicle prior to commencing to trade and also when considering the desirability of transferring an existing unincorporated business to a company.
The calculations necessary to compare the alternative business structures must be performed with care if they are to be accurate. They require a sound knowledge of income tax, national insurance and corporation tax.
Illustration 1
Sammy’s business has an annual tax-adjusted trading profit of £52,000. This figure is prior to any payments being made to Sammy. Sammy is considering three strategies: Strategy A, where the business is unincorporated, and Strategies B and C, where the business is incorporated.
Under Strategy A, where the business is unincorporated, the net income available to Sammy for the year ended 31 March 2025 is calculated as follows.
| Strategy A Unincorporated £ |
|
|---|---|
Income tax: | |
| Trading income | 52,000 |
| Personal allowance | (12,570) |
Taxable income | 39,430 |
| £37,700 x 20% | 7,540 |
(£39,430 – £37,700) x 40% | 692 |
Income tax payable | 8,232 |
Class 4 national insurance contributions (NIC): | |
| (£50,270 – £12,570) x 6% | 2,262 |
(£52,000 – £50,270) x 2% | 35 |
Total tax payable | 10,529 |
Net income for Sammy |
|
Under Strategies B and C, the business will be operated via Wilson Ltd, a company owned 100% by Sammy. Sammy will be the only employee of Wilson Ltd, such that the NIC employment allowance will not be available. Sammy will not receive any dividends other than those received from Wilson Ltd.
In these circumstances, the net income available to Sammy will depend on the mix of salary and dividends paid by the company. The calculations set out below show the income available to Sammy where the company’s profit after tax is paid to Sammy as a dividend in addition to a salary of either £37,000 or £16,000.
| Strategy B Salary £37,000 £ | Strategy C Salary £16,000 £ |
|
|---|---|---|
Wilson Ltd | ||
Trading profit pre salary | 52,000 | 52,000 |
| Salary | (37,000) | (16,000) |
Employer’s class 1 NIC ((£16,000 – £9,100) x 13.8%) | (3,850) | (952) |
Taxable total profit | 11,150 | 35,048 |
Corporation tax at 19% | (2,119) | (6,659) |
Available for dividend | 9,031 | 28,389 |
| Sammy | ||
Employment income | 37,000 | 16,000 |
Dividend income | 9,031 | 28,389 |
| Personal allowance | (12,570) | (12,570) |
Taxable income | 33,461 | 31,819 |
| Income tax liability | ||
(£24,430 (£37,000 – £12,570) x 20%)) | 4,886 | |
(500 x 0%) | 0 |
|
| (£8,531 x 8.75%) | 746 | |
| 5,632 |
|
|
|
|
| (£3,430 (£16,000 – £12,570) x 20%) | 686 | |
| (£500 x 0%) | 0 | |
| (£27,889 x 8.75%) | 2,440 | |
| 3,126 | ||
Salary | 37,000 | 16,000 |
Dividend | 9,031 | 28,389 |
Income tax | (5,632) | (3,126) |
Employee’s class 1 NIC |
|
|
Net income for Sammy | 38,445 | 40,989 |
Summary – Net income for Sammy
Strategy A Unincorporated £ | Strategy B Salary £37,000 £ | Strategy C Salary £16,000 £ |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Net income for Sammy | 41,471 | 38,445 | 40,989 |
The net income available to Sammy is, of course, simply the difference between the profit of the business and the total tax payable under each of the alternatives.
Strategy A Unincorporated £ | Strategy B Salary £37,000 £ | Strategy C Salary £16,000 £ |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Profit of the business | 52,000 | 52,000 | 52,000 |
Corporation tax | (2,119) | (6,659) |
|
Income tax | (8,232) | (5,632) | (3,126) |
National insurance contributions: | |||
Employer’s class 1 | (3,850) | (952) |
|
Employee’s class 1 | (1,954) | (274) |
|
Class 4 (£2,262 + £34) | (2,297) | ______ | ______ |
Net income available to Sammy | 41,471 | 38,445 | 40,989 |
A comparison of Strategy A with Strategies B and C illustrates that being self-employed may result in more income being available to the individual.
A comparison of Strategy B with Strategy C illustrates the tax that can be saved when a salary is reduced and is replaced by a dividend.
Conclusion
Calculating the total tax paid on the profits of a business is not particularly technically difficult. However, it does require very good knowledge of the basics of the taxes and great care must be taken in order to earn all of the available marks.
Note: The unincorporated business is also considered in:
Written by a member of the ATX-UK examining team
The comments in this article do not amount to advice on a particular matter and should not be taken as such. No reliance should be placed on the content of this article as the basis of any decision. The authors and ACCA expressly disclaim all liability to any person in respect of any indirect, incidental, consequential or other damages relating to the use of this article.
