JENNIE Brown and Nigel Syson head up the personal and corporate tax arms of the regional tax team of national accountancy firm, Haines Watts, with local offices in Kettering and Northampton.
They are firm believers in holistic tax planning, incorporating business strategy with personal goals, working with business owners to understand not only how they create their wealth but, as the business grows, how they can also help preserve that wealth.
JENNIE Brown and Nigel Syson head up the personal and corporate tax arms of the regional tax team of national accountancy firm, Haines Watts, with local offices in Kettering and Northampton.
They are firm believers in holistic tax planning, incorporating business strategy with personal goals, working with business owners to understand not only how they create their wealth but, as the business grows, how they can also help preserve that wealth. In this article they look at the importance of succession planning and preparation.
For business owners, making an exit from a business you have spent years building can be a complex, and sometimes emotional, process but a lack of succession planning is commonly identified as the main contributor to succession failure. Did you know that:-
* 50 per cent of all business transfers are for non-age related reasons
* Only 10 per cent of businesses go down to third generation
* 30 per cent of closures are due to succession failures
* Only 33 per cent of businesses survive the loss of the family entrepreneur
Research and our experience of advising clients over the years suggests that succession planning should start between five to ten years in advance of planned retirement. Having a clear strategy and process in place will ensure that when you retire your business will continue according to your wishes and that any tax obligations will be minimised for your successors. Some of the most generous tax reliefs exist to assist with succession planning and continuation of viable businesses, so it is really important that the opportunity to claim these isn’t missed.
Within a business’s life cycle there are a number of key milestones and a number of specific tax reliefs and planning initiatives that are appropriate to each:
* Set up and development of a business
* Consolidating a mature business while at the same time developing a strong management team
* Positioning the business to ensure that the owners may exit in the most tax beneficial way
Nigel Syson, Regional Head of Corporate Tax, said: “At the moment for any business involved with technical developments there are extremely generous R&D reliefs available, while EMI share arrangements are a very tax efficient way of securing the next generation of the managements team commitment to the business.”
Jennie Brown, Regional Head of Private Client Services, said: “The current Capital Taxes’ regime on the sale of shares in trading companies is very generous, and a great incentive for business owners both to structure their business in a tax efficient way and work towards a planned business exit. At the same time, for those businesses which, unusually these days, stay within the family the Inheritance Tax regime is very sympathetic to ensuring that these trading business can pass tax efficiencies from generation to generation.”
Whatever stage you are at in the business lifecycle, having an expert adviser at your side will ensure you properly understand your choices and can negotiate the best outcome for you, your family and your business, helping you to remain focused on the day-to-day running of your business and maximising its value.
If you’d like to discuss any of the above issues with the Haines Watts tax team don’t hesitate to get in touch with Nigel on 07887 660073 or via email at , or Jennie on 07554 553844 or via email at
