In certain situations, particularly where a sale of the company, winding up or purchase of any shares is in prospect, it will often be possible to structure the transaction so that the most tax efficient result is achieved. For an unquoted trading company, a transaction that results in a capital gain is often the most efficient, due to the high rates of business asset taper relief. In the case of a purchase of own shares or on the winding up of a company, it may be feasible to choose whether the proceeds are treated as income or capital. Consequently, large savings can be made if the appropriate planning is undertaken. However, from a day-to-day viewpoint, mitigating tax and National Insurance (NI) will be the main considerations and this is what we focus on in the remainder of the bulletin.