What are the relative tax advantages/disadvantages and implications of changing a letting from an assured shorthold tenancy to a holiday let? The scenario I am thinking of is using an Airbnb letting agent to manage one of my properties.

Arthur Weller replies:
Qualifying furnished holiday lettings (FHLs) usually have tax advantages over ordinary property rental, for example: (a) claiming capital gains tax reliefs for traders (e.g. entrepreneur’s relief); (b) claiming capital allowances for furniture and fixtures; and (c) the profits count as earnings for pension purposes. See HMRC guidance at www.gov.uk/government/publications/furnished-holidaylettings-hs253-self-assessment-helpsheet/cvgg. But FHLs are a separate business, for tax purposes, from an ordinary property rental business, and so the two businesses cannot be amalgamated when calculating the tax