Chancellor John Healey delivers his first Autumn Budget on Wednesday 28 October 2026, the first fiscal event under Prime Minister Andy Burnham. There's plenty of speculation floating around, and very little of it is confirmed policy. Here's how to tell the difference, and what's genuinely worth doing today rather than waiting to see what happens.
What's already locked in, regardless of tomorrow
Some things don't change based on what's announced. Your 2026/27 ISA allowance of £20,000, your £3,000 capital gains annual exempt amount, and your pension annual allowance with any carry-forward you're entitled to are all available right now, this tax year, no matter what the Budget contains. If you've been meaning to use any of these before the year runs out, there's no reason to wait.
What's genuinely uncertain
Reports suggest more than half of the government's fiscal headroom has disappeared since March, which points toward tax rises rather than cuts. Income tax thresholds and personal allowance treatment have been the subject of speculation following comments from the Prime Minister, but nothing has been confirmed. Stamp Duty Land Tax reform has reportedly been ruled out for now.
Worth being clear: anything reported before the Budget itself is briefing and speculation, not policy. It only becomes real when HM Treasury publishes the full Budget document alongside the OBR's forecast, on the day itself.
The mistake worth avoiding
The riskiest thing you can do before a Budget is make an irreversible decision based on a rumour. Pension tax-free cash speculation, in particular, resurfaces before nearly every fiscal event and has repeatedly failed to materialise. Taking pension money early, restructuring your business, or making a major financial decision purely to get ahead of something that hasn't been announced is rarely the right call.
What to do now
- Use the allowances you already have for 2026/27, these aren't at risk from tomorrow's announcement
- Check how fiscal drag, frozen thresholds pulling more of your income into higher tax bands, may already be affecting your own numbers
- Hold off on anything irreversible until you know what's actually confirmed
- Come back once the Budget document is published, that's when it's worth reviewing anything specific to your situation
We'll be looking at what's actually confirmed once the dust settles. Until then, the most useful thing you can do is make sure you're using what's already available to you.
If you'd like a second pair of eyes on what tomorrow's announcement means for you specifically, let's talk it through.