Working

If you have a number of small pension pots you've built up over years of changing jobs, they may be automatically combined in future under new Government plans. This could make it easier to stay on top of your pension savings and reduce costs – but it's still very early days, and we don't yet know exactly how the scheme will work in practice.

If you're one of millions who worked from home due to Government restrictions at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, even for just one day, you have until this Saturday (5 April) to claim a tax rebate for the entire 2020/21 tax year – worth up to £140.

If you're in full-time or part-time work in the UK, you could get 18 consecutive days off work in 2025 by taking just nine days of annual leave – or 24 consecutive days off by taking 13 days of leave. But don't hang about if you want to do it, particularly if holiday gets booked up quickly where you work.

Almost half a million workers are set to see their hourly pay rise by 5% due to an increase in the 'real living wage' – a voluntary employers' pay scheme based on the cost of living. Those covered by the scheme will see their pay rise to at least £12.60 an hour, while those in London will get £13.85 an hour.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced sweeping changes to national insurance contributions (NICs) that will see a typical employee saving over £330 a year from 6 July 2022. The change comes as part of today's Spring Statement, with other key announcements, which we will round up below, including the basic rate of tax being cut by 1 percentage point from April 2024 and fuel duty rates being cut by 5p/litre.