Investors encouraged to capitalise on tax relief
(01 March 2007)

Taxpayers with high rates could make the most of tax reliefs to achieve a £215,000 investment, it has been claimed.

According to EBS Management - the pensions specialist arm of stockbrokers Charles Stanley - consumers who invest £129,000 into their pension pot can claim £38,700 in tax relief as a high-rate payer, later claiming basic rate tax relief of £47,300.

The specialist states that those who fail to put their cash into their pension plan before the end of the tax year are putting their potential investments at risk.

Kate Ragnauth, director of EBS Management, said: "There is no longer any opportunity to carry back your entitlement from one year to the next, so the message from the government is effectively that you use it or lose it."

She added that HM Revenue and Customs allows consumers to invest on the basis of estimated earnings, meaning that Britons can make the most of any end-of-year bonuses sooner rather later.

The stockbrokers recently described investing in other areas, such as the alternative investment market, as being "delicious and exciting", but also "dangerous" for amateurs.