CPI Inflation Jumps to 3.3% in March on Fuel Prices
The ONS published March inflation data on Tuesday. CPI rose 3.3% in the 12 months to March, up from 3.0% in February — the first print above the Bank of England's March forecast. CPIH rose 3.4%.
The push came almost entirely from transport: petrol up 8.6p per litre and diesel up 17.6p month-on-month — direct pass-through from the Middle East-driven wholesale energy spike. The Bank of England had flagged CPI would likely sit between 3% and 3.5% through Q2 and Q3.
Mortgage Lenders Trim Rates After March Spike
HSBC, Halifax, and Santander cut selected fixed-rate products this week, partially reversing the March rise that followed the swap-rate jump on Middle East news. Average two-year fixes now sit around 5.84% and five-year fixes around 5.75% — still roughly 90 basis points above pre-conflict levels, despite Bank Rate holding at 3.75%.
Borrowers coming off a fix this summer should not read the cuts as a decisive turn — swap rates remain volatile and Tuesday's inflation print will keep the Bank cautious. Most lenders let you lock a rate up to six months ahead and switch if a better one appears before completion.
Sole Traders: HMRC's Overlap Relief Service Closes 31 May
If you are a sole trader or partner with an accounting year that does not end on 5 April, you may still be carrying unused overlap relief. Under basis period reform, 2025/26 was the final year to claim it, and HMRC's online service for retrieving your overlap figure closes on 31 May 2026. After that you will need to reconstruct the number from your own records.
Most affected traders dealt with this in their 2024/25 return, but anyone who deferred should request the figure now via their HMRC online account.
Source: GOV.UK — Get your overlap relief figure | Related: Self Assessment Tax Bill guide
MTD Clarification: SA109 Filers Exempt Until April 2027
HMRC has updated its Making Tax Digital for Income Tax exemption guidance for anyone filing the SA109 supplementary page — non-UK residents, dual residents, and users of the remittance basis or new foreign income and gains regime. If you included SA109 on your 2024/25 return, you are automatically exempt for 2026/27. If not, but you reasonably expect to need it for 2025/26 or 2026/27, you can apply for an exemption.
Earlier guidance tied automatic exemption to a forward-looking belief about 2026/27 only; that requirement has been removed. The exemption is temporary, falling away when MTD extends to the £30,000 threshold in April 2027.
Employers: Payrolling BIKs Registration Now Closed for 2026/27
HMRC's April Agent Update confirms the online service to register to payroll benefits-in-kind for 2026/27 is now closed. Employers who did not register before 6 April cannot payroll BIKs this tax year — any taxable benefits must be reported on P11D forms by 6 July 2026 as in previous years. Worth diarising for next year given the consultation on mandatory payrolling from 2027/28.
Key Dates
30 April 2026 (Thursday) — Bank of England MPC decision. Bank Rate currently 3.75%. A hold is still consensus, but Tuesday's hotter inflation print tilts the risk modestly toward a hawkish surprise or sharper forward guidance.
31 May 2026 — Overlap relief online service closes. Also the deadline for employers to issue P60s for 2025/26.
6 July 2026 — P11D deadline for 2025/26 employer benefits-in-kind (for anyone not signed up to payroll BIKs).
7 August 2026 — First MTD quarterly update due for sole traders and landlords in scope from April 2026, covering 6 April – 5 July 2026.