Tax Finance for Company Directors
Company directors face a dual tax obligation: their company has VAT and corporation tax deadlines, and they personally have self-assessment income tax on salaries, dividends, and other income. At peak times - particularly January and the company's CT deadline - both obligations can arrive simultaneously.
Personal and Corporate Tax Covered
DBF arranges tax bridging for both the company and the director personally, using whichever property (business or personal) is most suitable as security.
Director Tax Finance - August 2026
| Obligation | Who pays | Security options | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate VAT - quarterly bill | Company | Business premises or director personal property | Standard VAT bridge. Most common. See VAT bridging page. |
| Corporation Tax - annual bill | Company | Business premises or director personal property | CT bridge. Director can use personal property to support company borrowing. |
| Personal SA - dividend income tax | Director personally | Director's personal residential or investment property | Personal bridge. Regulated if on primary residence. |
| Personal SA - combined salary + dividend | Director personally | Personal property | Combined SA bill often large. January pressure. |
| Director's loan account - S455 tax | Company | Business or personal property | S455 charge (33.75% of overdrawn DLA, due with CT return). |
Indicative rates - August 2026. Rates change daily. Actual rate depends on LTV, security, credit profile, loan size, and exit strategy. Contact our team for a live rate comparison for your specific case. All rates sourced from lender product sheets and publicly available market data.
What determines your rate
Personal vs corporate tax liability
The director must be clear about which obligation is personal and which is corporate. Corporate VAT and CT are company liabilities - the company borrows (using its assets or with director guarantee). Personal SA tax is the director's individual liability - the director borrows personally (using personal property). Both types can be arranged simultaneously where needed.
Director as guarantor for company tax bridge
Where the company lacks sufficient property to secure a bridging loan alone, the director's personal property can be offered as additional security or as the primary security with the company as the underlying borrower. This is standard in the SME bridging market - directors regularly provide personal security for corporate borrowing.
S455 charge - director's loan account
Where a director's loan account (DLA) is overdrawn at the company's accounting year-end, the company must pay HMRC an S455 tax charge of 33.75% of the overdrawn balance alongside the CT return. This is a significant and sometimes surprising tax cost - a £50,000 overdrawn DLA triggers an £16,875 S455 charge. Bridging covers this alongside the main CT bill.
January concentration of tax obligations
For many directors, January is the most tax-intensive month: personal SA deadline (31 January) + payment on account. If the company has a December or January year-end, CT may also fall around this period. Planning for January cash flow well in advance - including considering bridging arrangements - is the most cost-effective approach.
Worked cost example
Director scenario - December year-end company. January is the worst month.
Company: CT bill due 1 October (9m+1d from December year-end): £65,000.
Company: Q1 VAT due 7 February: £28,000.
Director personal: SA due 31 January: £42,000 (dividend tax + POA).
Total tax obligations Oct-Feb: £135,000.
Available cash: £40,000 company, £15,000 personal.
Bridging strategy:
1. CT bridge: £25,000 from company commercial premises at 0.75%/month for 3 months = £600 cost.
2. SA bridge: £27,000 from director BTL at 0.65%/month for 3 months = £540 cost.
3. VAT: paid from company cashflow (normalises in February).
Total bridging cost: £1,140 on £52,000 of bridging - far less than penalty exposure.
Rate context and outlook
Director-led SMEs are one of the most active tax finance audiences - small enough that the director is personally close to both the corporate and personal tax obligations, large enough to face significant tax liabilities, and typically property-owning enough that bridging security is readily available. DBF's whole-of-market broker position means we can match each obligation (corporate and personal) to the most appropriate lender simultaneously.
Get a personalised rate comparison for your case
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Frequently asked questions
Can I use company property to fund my personal tax bill?
Not directly - a company cannot lend to its director for personal purposes without triggering loan benefit-in-kind tax and potentially S455 charges (if not repaid within 9 months). A more appropriate structure is the director taking a personal bridging loan secured against personal property. The company's property cannot directly secure a personal loan without creating tax complications.
What is the S455 tax charge?
The S455 charge applies when a company's director loan account (DLA) is overdrawn at the end of the accounting year and remains overdrawn 9 months later (when the CT return is due). The company pays 33.75% of the overdrawn balance as a temporary tax charge to HMRC. This is refunded when the DLA is repaid - but the cash outflow at the CT filing date can be significant. Bridging covers the S455 charge alongside the main CT bill.
Can I bridge my personal tax and company tax at the same time?
Yes - we routinely arrange coordinated tax bridges covering both personal and corporate obligations for director-led businesses. The personal bridge uses personal property as security; the company bridge uses business property (with or without director guarantee). The two applications run in parallel and can complete within days of each other.
What if my company is the security for my personal tax bridge?
A company cannot directly secure a personal tax bridge without corporate authority and potentially triggering financial assistance rules. The standard structure is the director using personally-owned property (home, BTL, or other). If the director has no personally-owned property, alternative structures (director's personal guarantee on a company-level facility) may be explored on a case-by-case basis.
Is January always the worst month for director tax?
For directors with a salary + dividend remuneration structure and a non-December company year-end, January is typically when the personal SA bill falls but the company CT may be at a different time. For December year-end companies, October/November (CT) + January (personal SA) creates the double pressure described. Planning both obligations well in advance - ideally in October for the October CT - reduces the January pressure significantly.
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Every tax deadline has a different lender answer. Tell us your circumstances and we will match them to the lenders that price your case properly, not the ones that decline it.