AWS have been looking into potential legislation changes that you will need to know for the 2020/21 tax year. This will all be confirmed when the budget is announced in March 2020 however this is what will potentially be changing as we head towards the new tax year.
Bereavement Leave
Coming into force in April 2020, the government have now passed the new paid bereavement leave law. This means that bereaved parents of children under 18 or a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy will receive two weeks of paid leave. Under the act, adopters, guardians, foster parents or anyone that has looked after the child such as relatives or family friends will have the same rights as the birth parents. The time off can be taken in a two week block or two one week periods as long as it's within 56 weeks of the date of death. This allows the employees to take time off at specific dates for example anniversaries or memorable occasions.
Provisional National Minimum Wage Changes 20/21
The new national minimum wage rates haven't been confirmed however, these are what they are looking to be with a 6.2% rise.
25 and over:
Current = £8.21
20/21 = £8.72
21-24:
Current = £7.70
20/21 = £8.20
18-20:
Current = £6.15
20/21 = £6.45
Under 18's:
Current = £4.35
20/21 = £4.55
Apprentices:
Current = £3.90
20/21 = £4.15
Still to be announced are the changes to all statutory payments including sick, maternity, paternity and adoption pay.
Civil Partnerships
As of 31st December 2019, civil partnerships were made legal in England and Wales for mixed sex couples. Originally, this law only allowed same sex couples to receive the same rights as married couples. This means that couples in a civil partnership will have access to all of the same benefits as a married couple. This could be tax benefits, pensions and inheritance.
We will keep you updated on all the new legislation's coming into force in the new tax year. Keep an eye on our social media pages for all of the latest news, updates and upcoming events.