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Selling Your Business: The basics you need to know today

Selling your company is frequently the climax of your business effort. When the time comes to move on or retire, you want to extract as much value as possible from your business. It is a significant choice and a difficult process, with several taxes and legal consequences to consider.

Self-employed owner

When you sell your firm, you have legal obligations to the employees you employ. You must also complete your company’s tax returns. It is important to inform your employees about when and why you are selling your business as well as about any redundancy or relocation packages.

Get an understanding of what laid-off employees are entitled to.

Notifying HMRC about selling business.

  • You can either use the online form to tell HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) about you selling your business. It covers both Self-Assessment and National Insurance

                                                                         OR

  • By calling HMRC to cancel your class 2 National Insurance contributions.

VAT

When selling a VAT-registered business, you normally must cancel your VAT registration. However, in certain circumstances, the new owner of your business can apply to keep your VAT registration number.

Finalizing your Income Tax while Selling Your Business

You must submit your Self-Assessment tax return by the due date. On the return, you must include the date you ceased trading.

For assistance with buying or selling your business, contact us on WhatsApp 07583452230 or email help@bizlawuk.co.uk to be connected to one of our experts. Please like and share our content via our social media links found on our website if you found this useful.

Capital gains tax if you sell or dispose of assets

By selling your business if you can make a capital gain, then you must pay a capital gain tax. You can reduce the amount of tax by claiming Entrepreneurs relief.

Business partnership

When selling a partnership, your duties vary depending on whether you are selling:

  • Your share of partnership
  • The entire partnership

Staff

If you have any staff working for you, it is your responsibility to tell them about when and why you are selling the partnership and details about the redundancy terms and relocation packages that you will offer.

VAT registration

The new owner can transfer the VAT registration number to the partnership if it is registered for VAT.

Tax returns

  • If you are selling your partnership stake, you must file a personal Self-Assessment tax return before the deadline.
  • If you are selling the whole partnership, you must ensure that the ‘selected partner’ delivers a Partnership Tax Return before the deadline.

The tax you need to pay while Selling Your Business

When you terminate the partnership, you realize a “capital gain”. This means you need to pay capital gain tax, to reduce the amount of tax you can claim an entrepreneur’s relief. There are several other reliefs available which you can even claim.

Limited Company

Your responsibilities will vary depending on whether:

  • You are selling your whole investment in your limited company.
  • Or the firm is selling a portion of its operations.

Selling the entire shareholding

Appoint new directors or company secretaries.

  • You must inform Companies House of the sale of your firm by amending your company’s registration data. To do this, you will need to:
  • It is necessary to appoint a new director. Depending on the type of business, you may be responsible for nominating a director before resigning. Following the completion of the appointment, you must submit an AP01 form to Companies House

Capital gain tax.

A VAT-registered business can transfer its registration to a new owner.

When you sell a firm, you must submit a Company Tax Return for the accounting period that ends on the transaction date.. You must also pay Corporation Tax on earnings generated during that period, including chargeable gain from the sale of company assets.

If the company sells part of the business

It is advisable not to notify your employees, suppliers, or rivals that you want to sell your firm until everything is in place. Their emotions may have a detrimental influence on your company’s profitability.

When the time comes, tell your employees why and when the company is being sold, as well as if they will get a redundancy payment or be kept by the new owner.

It is also advised that you should not provide too much information to potential purchasers before doing thorough checks and putting non-disclosure agreements in place.

 

For assistance with buying or selling your business, contact us on WhatsApp 07583452230 or email help@bizlawuk.co.uk to be connected to one of our experts. Please like and share our content via our social media links found on our website if you found this useful.

Reina D'costa

Dual qualified, experienced, practical and proactive solicitor. Founder of Bizlaw UK, a new model legal service consultancy.