At the Federation of Small Businesses, we're helping you to save time and get set for the year ahead with our must-read checklist for 2024. This guide includes all the deadlines and upcoming changes to legislation that you need to be aware of, including tax dates, updates to the National Minimum Wage, payroll deadlines, and more. Be sure to bookmark this page to come back to, as we’ll be keeping it updated throughout 2024.
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Use the menu below to jump to each section of this guide
- Tax deadlines
- Key dates for UK VAT (Updated 12 March 2024)
- National Minimum Wage rate increase
- Payroll deadlines
- New and upcoming employment legislation
Tax deadlines
Sole traders
As a sole trader, you’ll pay your income tax and National Insurance liabilities in two stages, known as payments on account. These are payments in advance towards your tax bill.
- 31 January 2024 – balance of any tax for year 2022/23 is due
- 31 January 2024 - first payment on account of tax for year 2023/24 is due
- 31 July 2024 – second payment on account of tax for 2023/24 is due
- 31 January 2025 – balance of any tax for year 2023/24 is due
- 31 January 2025 - first payment on account of tax for year 2024/25 is due
Don’t forget, you can contact HMRC for Time to Pay to set up a payment plan if you’re having difficulties. You have to pay interest if you pay late, so do this as soon as possible.
Self Assessments
You must file your 2023-24 Self Assessment tax return before:
- 31 October 2024 following the end of the tax year for a paper return
- 31 January 2025 following the end of the tax year for an online return
New to self-employment?
You must notify HMRC of the potential chargeability to tax and National Insurance Contributions by 5 October following the end of the tax year in which your business started. So, the deadline for the 2023-24 tax year is 5 October 2024.
New partner?
If you're in a partnership and a new partner has joined you in the 2023/24 tax year, you should notify HMRC by 5 October 2024.
Key dates for UK VAT
Updated 12 March 2024
30 April 2024: Deadline for selling any eligible GB-sourced motor vehicles that held in Northern Ireland pre-1 May 2023 under second-hand margin scheme. Any sold after this date cannot be sold under the margin scheme so full VAT will be due.
1 May 2024: VAT Fuel Scale Charge rates for cars updated for VAT return periods beginning on or after 1 May.
1 January 2024: Familiarisation period for the new late payment penalties ends. To avoid late payment penalties, businesses must pay or set up Time To Pay arrangements within 15 days of the payment due date (rather than the 30 days allowed in 2023).
1 January 2024: The zero-rate for female sanitary products will also cover reusable period underwear.
1 February 2024: The retro-fit of batteries and diverters in to domestic energy-saving systems (e.g. solar panels, wind turbines) and installation of water source heat pumps will qualify for the zero-rate until at least March 2027.
1 April 2024: The UK VAT registration threshold increases from £85,000 to £90,000 and the deregistration threshold from £83,000 to £88,000.
30 April 2024: Deadline for selling any eligible GB-sourced motor vehicles that held in Northern Ireland pre-1 May 2023 under second-hand margin scheme. Any sold after this date cannot be sold under the margin scheme so full VAT will be due.
1 May 2024: VAT Fuel Scale Charge rates for cars updated for VAT return periods beginning on or after 1 May.
Routine deadlines
These will vary depending on your VAT return period and whether you do quarterly, monthly or annual returns. For example, if your business is on calendar quarters March / June / September / December, due dates for VAT return periods would be:
- VAT returns and associated payments are made by 7 May / 7 August / 7 October / 7 February respectively
- Annual adjustments (if a partly exempt trader) are made on either the March or June returns (so 7 May or 7 August)
Customs duty and customs reporting
There will also be a number of changes coming in for customs duty and customs reporting purposes:
- By 4 June 2024, all exports must all be declared via HMRC’s customs declaration service (CDS) which has been gradually replacing its old system (CHIEF).
- For movements of goods from Mainland UK to Northern Ireland, The Windsor Framework – further detail and publications gives more information about changes expected in late 2024.
National Minimum Wage rate increase
The national living wage extends to 21-year-olds and all NMW rates increase from 1 April 2024 across the UK as follows:
- The rate for workers aged 21 or over (the national living wage) increases to £11.44 per hour (previously £10.42 for workers aged 23 or over)
- The rate for workers aged at least 18 but under 21 increases to £8.60 per hour (from £7.49)
- The rate for workers aged 16 to 17 increases to £6.40 (from £5.28)
- The apprentice rate increases to £6.40 (from £5.28)
Payroll deadlines
When you’re managing a team, there are annual payroll reporting and payment deadlines that you need to remember. Find out more about your annual responsibilities with our payroll guide.
6 April 2024: Update employee payroll records for the new tax year
19 April 2024: Submit your final Full Payment Summary and Employer payment summary for the year ended 5 April 2023 and pay any tax/NIC due for the year.
31 May 2024: Give a P60 to all employees on your payroll who are working for you on the last day of the tax year
6 July 2024: Reporting of employee expenses and benefits
19 July 2024: Payment of Class 1A NICs by post, 22 July 2024 if paid electronically
New and upcoming employment legislation
We've summaries key changes in employment law in 2024, from holiday pay and flexible working requests to protection from redundancy.
Clarification of some working time record-keeping duties
When: 1 January 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
To clarify that employers are not required to record the number of working hours each day for each worker but must still keep “adequate records” to prove compliance with statutory minimum rest breaks.
(Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023)
UK legislation brings into UK law the following pre-existing employment rights which result from European caselaw
When: 1 January 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales
- Workers can carry forward all statutory holiday to the next leave year where it could not be taken as a result of statutory leave (maternity, and other specific family-related leave).
- Workers can carry forward any of the four weeks’ basic statutory holiday that could not be taken as a result of sick leave, provided it is taken within 18 months of the end of the original leave year.
- Workers can carry forward any of the four weeks’ basic statutory holiday if the employer has not recognised the worker's right to holiday, has not given the worker a reasonable opportunity to take the holiday, did not encourage them to take it, or has not informed the worker that any holiday not taken by the end of the leave year, which cannot be carried forward, would be lost. In these situations, holiday can be carried forward up to the end of the first leave year in which none of the above apply.
- A week's pay for the four weeks' basic holiday pay entitlement must include payments ‘intrinsically linked’ to the performance of tasks the worker is obliged to carryout, payments for professional or personal status and other payments which have been regularly paid in the 52 weeks preceding the calculation date in Great Britain and 12 weeks preceding the calculation date in Northern Ireland.
(The Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023 for England, Scotland and Wales and in The Working Time (Amendment) Regulations(Northern Ireland) 2023 for Northern Ireland.)
Changes to paternity leave allow fathers and partners
When: Where the expected week of childbirth/placement for adoption is on or after 6 April 2024.
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
- To take their leave and pay as two non-consecutive blocks of one week, rather than only in one block of either one or two weeks.
- To take their leave and pay at any point in the first year after the birth or adoption of their child, rather than only within the first eight weeks after adoption or birth.
Employees will only need to give 28 days’ notice of their intention to take paternity leave.
Holiday entitlement for irregular hours workers and part-year workers will be calculated at 12.07% of hours worked in a pay period
When: For holiday years from 1 April 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
(Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023)
Rolled-up holiday pay allowed for irregular hours workers and part-year workers to be made lawful
When: For holiday years from 1 April 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
Rolling-up holiday pay involves paying an additional amount representing holiday pay for each pay period, instead of paying holiday pay at the time annual leave is taken.
(Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023)
Leave for carers
When: 6 April 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
One week of unpaid leave per year for employees who are providing or arranging care for a dependant with a long-term care need.
A person is a dependant of an employee if they:
- Are a spouse, civil partner, child or parent of the employee
- Live in the same household as the employee, otherwise than by reason of being the employee’s boarder, employee, lodger or tenant, or
- Reasonable rely on the employee to provide or arrange care
A ‘long-term care need’ is defined as:
- Illness or injury (physical or mental) that requires, or is likely to require, care for more than three months
- A disability for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010
- Requiring care for a reason connected with old age
Changes to statutory flexible working request rules
When: Expected April 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
This includes allowing employees to make two requests in a 12-month period and reducing the time within which the employer must notify the employee of its decision to two months. The Government has also confirmed its intention to introduce legislation to take forward measures including making the statutory right to request flexible working a day one right.
The right to request to work flexibly will become a day one right (instead of a right only available to employees who have 26 weeks’ employment). This new right will come into effect for flexible working requests made on or after 6 April 2024.
Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023
Protection from Redundancy: Pregnancy and Family leave
When: 6 April 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
Currently, parents on maternity leave, adoption leave or shared parental leave should be offered first refusal of any suitable alternative employment which may be available where they are put at risk of redundancy. From 6 April 2024, this protection from redundancy is extended as follows:
- For maternity – the protected period will cover pregnancy up to 18 months from the first day of the estimated week of childbirth. The protected period can be changed to cover 18 months from the exact date of birth, if the employee gives the employer notice of this date prior to the end of maternity leave.
- For adoption – the protected period will cover 18 months from placement for adoption.
- For shared parental leave – the protected period will cover 18 months from birth, provided that the parent has taken a period of at least 6 consecutive weeks of shared parental leave. This protection will not apply if the employee is otherwise protected under 1. or 2. above.
Duty on employers to give all tips to workers without deductions and to ensure tips are distributed fairly
When: Expected May 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023
Employers will be able to consult directly with employees on TUPE transfers if they don’t already have employee representatives in place
When: For transfers on or after 1 July 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
- If the organisation has fewer than 50 employees (i.e. small businesses); or
- For organisations of any size, if fewer than 10 employees are to transfer
Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023
Right to request more predictable terms and conditions of work
When: Expected September 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
For those on temporary (fixed-term) contracts of one year or less and zero hour/casual hour workers.
Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023
Duty to prevent sexual harassment of employees
When: October 2024
Where: England, Scotland, Wales
This provides for a new positive (proactive) legal duty on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of their employees occurring in the course of their employment.
Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023
Other employment legislation
There are several upcoming legislations with no confirmed implementation dates yet. We’ll update this article when more information is available.
- Statutory code of practice on "fire and rehire" (England, Scotland, Wales)
- Length of non-compete clauses limited to three months (England, Scotland, Wales)
- Paid leave for victims of domestic abuse in Northern Ireland