Car tax changes and an increase in the cost of a passport are among the changes to the law planned for the beginning of April.

Drivers of diesel cars could see huge increases in their tax bills as new rules a brought in to help discourage high-emission cars.

There are also changes to benefits, including Universal Credit, and large companies will have to reveal the size of their gender pay gap.

Gloucestershire Live has produced a list of the changes you need to know about, so read on to find out.

New car tax rules

Car tax, or Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), for the first year is based on emissions and will rise for all but the greenest cars.

The top rate, for cars with emissions over 255 g/CO2/km, will increase from £2,000 to £2,070.

More importantly for anyone thinking of buying a new diesel car, these vehicles will go up by one band as well, which could cost some drivers an extra £500.

There is an exemption - the changes only apply to diesel cars, not vans or commercial vehicles.

From the second year onwards, drivers of petrol and diesel cars will pay a flat rate of £140 while drivers of hybrids and other alternative fuel vehicles will pay £130.

Those with genuine zero emissions will continue to pay nothing.

However, all cars that cost more than £40,000 - including zero-emissions cars - will attract an extra premium fee of £310 for years two to six of ownership.

It is the final list price of the car that determines if it passes the threshold - so if you buy a cheaper car and add lots of extras you still have to pay the premium fee.

Experts say electric cars which cost more than £40,000 will no longer be the tax-busting option they used to be.

The motoring press suggests that German-made cars will face big increases.

Petrolprices.com says the emphasis on actual real-world emissions, in the wake of the emissions scandal, will affect drivers of German cars in particular.

New cars also face tough new tests.

Euro 6 standards have been being introduced on a rolling programme since September and are said to produce the cleanest cars in history.

Gender pay gap

Employers in England, Wales and Scotland with 250 employees or more will be required to publish information about the differences in pay between men and women in their workforce.

The information is based on a pay bill "snapshot" from April 5 2017 and the first reports must be published by April 4.

Passport renewals

The cost of the British passport is set to increase and for the first time ever you will have to pay extra to apply by post.

A standard adult passport will go up from the current price of £72.50 to £75.50 for online applications and £85 for postal applications.

Children's passport charges will rise from £46 to £49 online and £58.50 in the post.

The £12.50 increase for the postal service represents a jump of 17% for adults and 27% for children.

And with the Post Office check and send service costing an extra £9.75, anyone wanting to use that service from March 27 will have to pay a total of £94.75.

Adults choosing to apply online will still pay less than they would have in 2009, with passport fees having decreased in 2012.

Welfare changes

There are four main changes to benefits coming into force in April.

The four-year cash freeze in working age benefits will enter its fourth year, meaning a 3% cut in real terms affecting almost 11 million families.

People transferring from housing benefit to Universal Credit will continue to receive housing benefit payments for an extra two weeks.

This is designed to reduce the threat of eviction caused by delays in housing cost payments at the start of a new Universal Credit claim.

New claims for Employer Supported Childcare (childcare vouchers) will not be accepted, but if you're already using childcare vouchers you can continue to do so provided your employer continues to offer them.

Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) - which helps with interest payments on mortgages if you're in receipt of certain benefits - is ending on April 5 and will be replaced by a loan.

Termination payments

The government plans to make changes to the taxation of termination payments from April.

The proposals include:

  1. Removing the distinction between contractual and non-contractual PILONs (payments in lieu of notice) so all PILONs are taxable and subject to Class 1 National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
  2. Ensuring that the first £30,000 of a termination payment remains exempt from income tax and that any payment made to any employee that relates solely to the termination of employment continues to have an unlimited employee NICs exemption.
  3. Aligning the rules for income tax and employers NICs so that employer NICs will be payable on payments above £30,000 (which are currently only subject to income tax).

Employment Allowance changes

The government plans to introduce a further deterrent to the employment of illegal workers.

From April, employers will not be able to claim the Employment Allowance for one year if they have hired an illegal worker, been penalised by the Home office and exhausted all appeal rights against that penalty.

Minimum Energy Performance Ratings

From April 1, there will be a requirement for any privately rented properties to have a minimum energy performance rating of E.

A civil penalty of up to £4,000 will be imposed on landlords whose properties fall below this standard.