The purpose of this page is simple: every UK money-rule change that matters, dated, with an honest label. Enacted means law. Announced means stated policy awaiting its date. Rumour means informed speculation, and it stays labelled that way.
Each item carries the date of the development, one line on what it means, and the date we last verified it. Verification dates matter: a rule summary that was true in May can mislead by November.
Chancellor John Healey confirmed the date of his first Budget, the first of the Burnham government (Andy Burnham became Prime Minister on 20 July 2026). The government has pledged no increases to income tax, VAT or National Insurance rates this Parliament, which concentrates speculation on capital and property taxes instead. The three rumour items at the bottom of this feed are what that speculation currently looks like.
What it means: 82 days of speculation season. Nothing below the Rumour line is worth acting on before Budget day.
Last verified 7 August 2026.
One of the new Prime Minister's first measures: the 5% VAT rate on household electricity drops to zero from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027 in Great Britain, with equivalent funding for Northern Ireland (where the UK cannot change the rate unilaterally). Expected effect: roughly £45 off the annual Ofgem price cap.
What it means: a temporary trim to winter bills, not a structural change. It expires with the tax year.
Last verified 7 August 2026 against the government announcement.
Since 6 April 2026 (Finance Act 2026), 100% agricultural and business property relief applies within a combined £2.5m allowance per person, transferable between spouses for £5m per couple. Above the allowance, relief halves, giving an effective 20% IHT rate on the excess.
What it means: family farms and trading businesses above £2.5m per owner now carry a real IHT cost that used to be fully relieved.
Last verified 7 August 2026.
The largest change in this feed. From 6 April 2027, unused pension funds count in the estate for IHT, reversing the post-2015 position. Where death occurs after 75, beneficiaries also pay income tax on what they draw, which is how combined effective rates above 67% arise on the same pound.
What it means: for estates above the nil-rate bands, the pension is no longer a default IHT shelter. The full mechanics, worked households and the remaining window are in the April 2027 deep dive.
Last verified 7 August 2026.
From April 2027, savers under 65 can put at most £12,000 of the £20,000 annual ISA allowance into cash; the remaining £8,000 must go to an investment ISA if used at all. Over-65s keep the full £20,000 cash option. Not in effect for 2026/27.
What it means: the last full-£20,000 cash ISA year for under-65s is the current one, ending 5 April 2027.
Last verified 7 August 2026.
From 6 April 2029, the National Insurance saving on salary-sacrificed pension contributions is capped at £2,000 a year. Until then, sacrifice remains the most NI-efficient contribution route without limit (within the £60,000 annual allowance).
What it means: three more tax years of uncapped NI saving on sacrifice; after that, the arithmetic changes for higher sacrificers.
Last verified 7 August 2026.
A perennial candidate whenever a Chancellor needs revenue without touching the pledged rates. Discussed in the commentary; no proposal published.
What it means: nothing yet. Crystallising gains purely out of rumour-fear has a real cost (today's 18% or 24% is payable immediately); the rumour has no cost until Budget day.
Rumour status re-checked 7 August 2026: still no published proposal.
Speculation about lifetime-gifting rules and broader estate taxation resurfaces before every Budget. The major IHT changes already in law (pensions from April 2027, the APR/BPR cap above) came from earlier Budgets; nothing new has been published.
What it means: the enacted 2027 change is the one worth planning around. The rumoured ones are not plannable, because they have no text.
Rumour status re-checked 7 August 2026: still no published proposal.
The Prime Minister has expressed sympathy for land value taxation in the past, which keeps the idea in circulation. No proposal, no consultation, no draft legislation.
What it means: a structural idea to watch across years, not something that changes any decision this side of the Budget.
Rumour status re-checked 7 August 2026: still no published proposal.
Information and guidance only. Not personal advice. This feed reports rule changes and their status; it does not recommend action. Figures cross-checked against rules bundle UK-2026.1.1 (2026/27) and re-verified by web search on the date shown per item. Verify decisions with a qualified FCA-authorised adviser before acting.
Sonuswealth is pre-launch. In the app, rule changes arrive dated and labelled the same way, applied to your actual numbers.