Autumn Budget 2025: what was in the small print?

The chancellor set out her Autumn Budget on Wednesday after weeks of anticipation. 

While the chancellor talked through the most significant of his planned changes in Parliament last week, some details slipped under the radar.

Here, Which? takes a look through the small print of the Red Book to find some of the changes that might not have made headlines, but could still impact your wallet.

• Find out more: all the key announcements from the Autumn Budget 2025.

Lifetime Isa to be reformed

Lifetime Isas were introduced in 2017 to help people aged 18 to 39 buy their first home or save for retirement, offering a 25% government bonus. 

The £450,000 house price cap has never been updated, leaving the product difficult to use in many higher-cost areas. 

Withdrawals for other reasons are subject to a 25% penalty, which removes the bonus and some of the saver’s own funds.

The chancellor will launch a consultation on a replacement first-time buyer scheme in early 2026.

• Find out more: best lifetime Isas 2025.

Inheritance tax changes

There were several inheritance tax (IHT) changes announced in the budget, these included: 

• IHT bands frozen: The freeze on IHT thresholds has been extended to 2030-31. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) says the policy will generate £14.5bn a year from eligible estates – up from around £9bn in the current tax year.
• Gifting to charity: The IHT tax-free status for gifts to charity is being restricted. Starting 26 November 2025 (lifetime) and 6 April 2026 (in a will), gifts must go directly to approved UK charities or sports clubs; gifts to certain trusts are no longer tax-free.
• Simplify IHT on pensions: From April 2027, unspent pension pots will be included in people’s estates for IHT purposes. Personal representatives will be able to direct pension scheme administrators to withhold 50% of taxable benefits for up to 15 months, and they will no longer be liable for IHT on pensions discovered after HMRC clearance. 
• Farm exemptions for IHT: Any unused part of the new £1m allowance for the 100% rate of Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief will be transferable between spouses or civil partners. This will also apply where the first death occurred before 6 April 2026. 
• Tax loophole closed on UK farmland owned overseas: From 6 April 2026, UK farms and agricultural buildings owned through overseas companies will be treated as UK property for IHT purposes, closing a loophole that previously kept them outside the tax net. 
• Loopholes closed for overseas trust owners: From 26 November 2025, the government will close loopholes that allowed trust assets to be moved to reduce or avoid IHT exit charges. 

Find out more: Inheritance tax: thresholds, rates and who pays.

Plan 2 student loan repayment band frozen

Currently, if you're on a Plan 2 student loan – which is all English students who started university between 2012 and 2022, and Welsh students who have started since 2012 – you pay back 9% of anything you earn above a certain threshold.

It's currently £28,470 a year and will rise to £29,385 in April 2026. The threshold will then be frozen until 2030, meaning repayments will increase in real terms over time.

• Find out more: repaying your student loan.

Help to Save scheme expanded

Help to Save allows eligible savers to put away £50 a month for four years, building up to £2,400 in deposits. 

The government adds a 50% bonus based on the highest balance you reach at key points during the term.

The scheme will now become permanent and will open to an extra 1.5 million low earners from 2028.

• Find out more: best savings rates 2025.

Change to how self-employed people pay tax

The government wants people to pay income tax closer to the time they earn it. 

From April 2029, anyone who does a self-assessment tax return and also has PAYE income will see more of their tax collected through their payslip during the year, rather than settling a large bill later.

For people who are fully self-employed, nothing has been decided yet. A consultation will run in early 2026 on options for making self-assessment tax bills due sooner, such as paying in instalments throughout the year.

• Find out more: how to fill in a self-assessment tax return.

Tax relief for homeworking costs to end

From April 2026, the government will scrap the tax relief you can currently claim if you work from home and your employer doesn’t cover your extra costs. 

However, employers will still be allowed to give staff money towards homeworking expenses without it being taxed.

• Find out more: tax reliefs – how to reduce your tax bill.

Save on your tax bill

Members can use GoSimpleTax's tax calculator for £32.50 and avoid accountant fees

Get started

Shift cancellation pay to be taxed

From April 2026, the payments that workers receive when a shift is cancelled, moved or shortened at short notice, will be treated in the same way as wages. 

This means that these payments will be subject to income tax, bringing them into line with how other earnings are taxed. 

New tax on overseas online shopping

Overseas retailers can currently send parcels worth £135 or less to the UK without paying customs duty. 

This relief will be removed from March 2029 at the latest, meaning low-value goods bought from abroad will be subject to customs duty. 

Retailers may pass these extra costs on to shoppers, making some overseas purchases more expensive.

• Find out more: online marketplaces: what you need to know before you buy.

Inflation increases for smaller tax allowances

Several smaller tax allowances, including the Married Couple’s Allowance and the Blind Person’s Allowance, will rise by 3.8% from April 2026 in line with September’s CPI figure. 

This means the maximum Married Couple’s Allowance will increase from £11,280 to £11,710, while the Blind Person’s Allowance will rise from £3,130 to £3,250. 

• Find out more: married couple's tax allowance explained.

More childcare support  

From April 2026, families on Universal Credit who have more than two children in paid childcare will receive extra help. 

The maximum amount that can be reimbursed will rise by £736.06 per month for each additional child, giving larger families more support with rising childcare costs. 

• Find out more: tax-free childcare and help with childcare costs.

NS&I has been given a bigger savings target

National Savings and Investments (NS&I) has had its fundraising target increased to £13bn for 2025-26, with the flexibility to raise up to £17bn. 

This higher target means that NS&I may look to make its savings products more attractive, which could include improvements to the premium bond prize fund rate or other account rates.

• Find out more: check if you have won a premium bond prize.

Get a year of super-useful advice

Get the best deals, avoid scams and grow your savings with expert guidance all year for only £36.75 – that’s 25% off.

Join Which? Money

Offer ends 8th January 2026

Loan charge settlement scheme

The Loan Charge was introduced in 2016 to tackle tax-avoidance schemes in which workers were paid through so-called loans rather than wages. 

Following concerns about the impact of large retrospective tax bills, the government commissioned an independent review.

The Autumn Budget 2025 confirms that a new settlement scheme will be introduced for people with outstanding Loan Charge debts. This will give affected taxpayers an alternative way to resolve what they owe, with full details to be set out separately in the government’s response to the review.