I have read this carefully. It seems it needs to report the result of every single trade made during the year (instead of simply inputting the total profit of the year) ? Do you confirm ? I wonder how scalpers can manage that !
Talk to HMRC and get their (written) advice on details like that. Your broker may also be able to point to how other clients handle their tax reporting responsibilities.
Spread betting works great if you’re a swing trader. Otherwise if you’re really short term the bid/offer kills you, and if you’re a long term trader the funding rates kill you. And obviously losses are not tax deductible. The other thing not mentioned before is that you’ll be taxed at 20pc as long as your PnL is capital gains from investments. It’s not clear cut but if trading is your main / only source of income Your PnL May be recategorised as “income” and then you can pay up to 45pc. My advice would be to have a part time job / consulting gig on the side so you can always say that’s your income and trading PnL is “investing”.
As a spreadbetter since 2003, I completely agree with these points. SB often gets a bad name from people who don't use it or people who abuse its features: use it correctly and make money.
No it's v clear cut. I don't know why people keep confusing this. No taxes whatsoever on profits from spread betting if u are an individual.
No...you just have to report the total amount made. If the authorities wish to question it, you can just provide them with statements which detail all your trades.
Yes spread betting is tax free of course. What I meant was that if you decide to go the tax paying route and use a “normal” broker, then it’s better not to report just capital gains otherwise there’s a risk authorities recategorize them as income.