The Plan 1 student loan interest rate reduced to 6% (from 6.25%) from 30 August. This rate change applies across the UK with the Department for Education (DfE), the Welsh Government and the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland (DfE NI) all confirming the change.
The reduction follows the Bank of England Base Rate changing to 5% earlier in August.
Those running payrolls and payroll bureaus should notice a reduction in student loan deductions for relevant employees in their September payrolls. If not, you may need to confirm that your payroll software has correctly updated.
See: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/change-to-plan-1-student-loan-interest-rate-announcement
Some self-employed taxpayers who filed their 2024/25 self-assessment tax return may have been incorrectly asked to pay class 2 national insurance contributions (NIC) on their SA302 tax calculation. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has now confirmed that this issue has been fixed.
For many sole traders and small business owners, reviewing their accounting system only happens when something forces the issue. For instance, many sole traders are currently looking at whether their accounting system meets the requirements for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.