Many people have turned a hobby into a side hustle. If that’s you, it’s worth checking whether you need to pay tax on the money you earn.

With wedding season in full swing, some people earn extra income by designing wedding stationery, filming first dances, baking cakes, or offering other creative services.

If you earn more than £1,000 from your side hustle in a tax year, you may need to register for Self Assessment, complete a tax return, and pay tax on your profits.

Remember, the £1,000 trading allowance covers all your side hustle income. If you have more than one source of trading income, you must add them together before you check whether you’ve gone over the limit.

In most cases, you don’t need to tell HMRC about money from selling unwanted personal items. However, if you make or buy goods to sell for a profit, or you provide services for payment, HMRC is likely to treat this as trading.

Not sure whether your side hustle counts as taxable income? Get in touch with us today. We’ll explain what the rules mean for you and help you meet your tax responsibilities with confidence.

The announcement of mandatory payrolling for Benefits In Kind was originally expected to start in April 2027, but following industry pressure, it will now be introduced in two phases.

Phase 1 will continue to be rolled out from 6 April 2027, with Phase 2 starting a year later on 6 April 2028. The move to mandatory payrolling will replace the current P11D process for most benefits and move it to real-time processing through a company’s payroll system.

Employers providing employee benefits must provide taxable values through payroll in real-time and apply Income Tax and Class 1A NICs through payroll rather than submitting yearly P11D forms.

Phase 1 of mandatory payrolling from April 2027 will include: company cars, car fuel, vans, van fuel and employer-provided medical benefits.

Phase 2 from April 2028 will include most other Benefits In Kind except beneficial loans and living accommodation. These will continue to be voluntary.

Further guidance is expected by July 2026.

If you need any help with the mandatory payrolling changes, please give us a call. We would be happy to help you.