Key financial dates for the upcoming year.

Some of the key financial dates for the upcoming year.

David Lane, the technical director at LGT Wealth Management, provided some key dates for the upcoming year that we feel might be useful.

2025

February

1. Bank of England MPC meets to set interest rates. Currently at 4.75% and any decision will have a knock-on effect on the mortgage market

March

1. Free Wills March
2. https://www.nationalfreewills.net/ This is organised by a range of charities and individuals older than 55 can have a simple will drafted for them for free by a participating solicitor.
3. Rail fares go up by 4.6% which includes season tickets and the Tube look to buy and/or renew before the price hike

April

Pre 5th April

1. From 1 April, the threshold at which house buyers pay stamp duty falls from £250,000 to £125,000.
2. First-time buyers will see it drop from £425,000 to £300,000 (https://cullimoredutton.co.uk/insights/blog/understanding-stamp-duty-changes-why-now-is-the-time-to-act/)
3. Council Tax goes up. The maximum amount a council can increase council tax is 5% without applying to the government for “permission” to increase by a higher number
4. The second energy price cap will come into play from 1st April to 30th June. Forecast to nudge higher
5. TV licence goes up £5 a year to £174.50
6. Water bills are anticipated to rise
7. Childcare bills tend to rise in April and may go higher due to the increase in national minimum wage and ER NI Contributions
8. 5th April end of tax year planning deadline

Post 6th April

1. New state pension increases by 4.1% to £11,973 p.a. with a full qualifying NI record
2. For employers the earnings threshold at which ER NI is paid reduces from £9,100 to £5,000 and the tax rate increases from 13.8% to 15.0%

August

1. Annual tuition fees for most courses in England will rise from £9,250 to £9,535
2. Students starting university in September 2025 are expected to walk away with an average debt of £43,000.

September

1. Working parents with children over 9 months MAY be entitled to 30 hours of funded childcare in England during term times
2. To qualify parents must earn between £9,520 and £100,000
3. If you find yourself over the £100,000 ceiling, making a pension contribution would help so that “adjusted net income” is below the threshold.

November

1. Likely the government will introduce its second budget in November.

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