Tax, legal and finance: who you will need, and when.
Who you will need for tax, legal and finance before you sell, and when to bring them in.
For any electrical business owner planning a sale. We signpost the right people; the advice comes from them, not from us.
Update, November 2026. The October 2026 Budget announced that the Business Asset Disposal Relief lifetime limit will fall from £1 million to £500,000 for qualifying disposals from the start of the 2027 to 2028 tax year in April 2027. Relief already claimed counts towards the limit, and the 18% rate does not change. For tax, the date of an unconditional contract normally counts as the date of disposal rather than completion, and specific rules will apply to contracts signed before the change that complete after it. Where this page quotes a different limit, rate or date, this note takes priority. Take advice on your own position. What the change means for owners.
What you get
- Which specialists you will need, and when to bring each one in.
- The points in a sale where their advice matters most.
- A route to acquisition finance for your buyer.
How it works
Your accountant, early
Ideally a few years before a sale.
Check the tax
Again before the main deal terms are agreed.
A corporate solicitor
Once the main deal terms are agreed.
Finance for the buyer
Through Reads Commercial Finance, if needed.
What we look at
Why these people come in early
How a sale is structured, whether it is shares or assets, how much is deferred and when it completes, affects the tax you pay and the protection you have.
Those decisions are hard to change once heads of terms, the short document setting out the main points of the deal, are signed, so your specialists need to be involved before then. Bringing them in late usually means accepting a structure that was set without them.
Business Asset Disposal Relief
Under HMRC's current rules, Business Asset Disposal Relief gives owners selling a business they work in an 18% rate of capital gains tax (the tax on the gain you make from the sale) on qualifying gains, up to a £1m lifetime limit, falling to £500,000 from April 2027, and the rate is normally set by the day the sale contract becomes binding with no conditions left.
Whether you qualify, and what it means for your sale, is a question for your tax adviser, and one more reason to speak to them well ahead of a sale rather than in its final weeks.
An accountant or tax adviser
Bring them in early, ideally a few years before a sale, to look at how the business and your shareholding are set up, and again before heads of terms to check the tax on the deal as it stands.
Usually that starts with your own accountant, who already knows the business, and then a tax adviser who handles business sales.
A corporate solicitor
From heads of terms onwards, a corporate solicitor acts for you on the sale agreement, the disclosures and the warranties (the statements about the business you confirm in the contract), and on the terms of any part of the price paid after completion.
Those later payments can be made on fixed dates or, as an earn-out, only if the business hits agreed targets. The difference matters, and the wording of those terms is legal work for your solicitor rather than ours.
Share sale or asset sale
On a share sale, the buyer buys the company's shares, so the employer does not change. In an asset sale, the buyer buys the business's assets, and employees transfer to the new owner on their existing terms under TUPE, the rules that protect staff when a business changes hands.
The route also affects registrations: NICEIC certification does not pass automatically on an asset sale, and on a share sale changes must still be reported. Your electricians' ECS cards stay with them. Your solicitor and tax adviser will advise on which route suits you.
Finance for the buyer
If a buyer needs acquisition finance to complete the purchase, Reads Commercial Finance handles it.
A buyer's ability to fund the deal is one of the things Simon weighs when comparing offers, alongside the price, the timing and the conditions, so knowing where finance can come from helps a sale move.
Reads Commercial Finance handles finance only: tax and legal advice still come from your own specialists.
What you'll need to have ready
- Your accountant's details.
- Your company's articles of association and any shareholder agreement.
- A clear record of who owns the shares.
What happens after
When your specialists are lined up, Simon runs the sale, and Ben gets the figures ready for a buyer's accountants. If you do not have the right specialists yet, Simon can suggest the kind to look for.
Financial planning before and after the sale
We can introduce you to specialist partners who can advise you before and after the sale. They look at where you stand, your pension, tax around the sale, the proceeds and your family. Reads makes the introduction; the advice comes from them. See financial planning before and after the sale.
Questions owners ask
Do you give tax or legal advice?
No. We will tell you when you need it, and work alongside your own accountant and solicitor.
When should I speak to a tax adviser?
Early, ideally a few years before a sale, and again before heads of terms to check the tax on the deal as it stands.
What if my buyer needs finance?
If a buyer needs acquisition finance to complete the purchase, Reads Commercial Finance handles it.
Talk it through in confidence.
We can tell you when each professional is likely to be needed in your sale; the advice itself comes from them.