File Your Tax Return By Jan 31st To Avoid Penalties

It is only 5 days to the self assessment deadline for filing your tax return as I write this blog. It is very important that you file your tax return before the deadline, as if you don’t, you run the risk of penalties even if you do not owe any taxes.

The initial penalty you would be liable for is £100, but after 3 months there will be added penalties of £10 per day up to a maximum of £900. You can be liable to pay more penalties if you delay the payments for over 6 months.

Check With A Tax Expert To See If You Need To File A Tax Return

Advice NI urge people to check with a tax expert if they are unsure whether they need to file a self assessment tax return, to avoid any penalties further down the line. And of course you can contact us here at WHR Accountants on 028 3752 2909 if you require any expert assistance on filing your tax returns.

Here is what Sinead Campbell, Head of Money, Debt and Quality at Advice NI, says about filing a tax return, copied from a post on the Business Eye website. She says that:

“There are various instances in which people may need to file, and it’s important to be clear on your responsibility to avoid having to pay any penalties. People may need to file a return if they are newly self-employed and have earned a gross income over £1,000 or are a new partner in a business.

“However, in addition to these instances, people may also need to file if they earned below £1,000 but wish to pay Class 2 National Insurance Contributions voluntarily to protect your entitlement to State Pension and certain benefits. Similarly, people who received Child Benefit payments but now need to pay the High-Income Child Benefit Charge because they or their partner earned more than £50,000 in the 2023/24 period will also need to register and complete the self-assessment.”

The Need To Register Before You Can Send In A Tax Return

She goes on to talk about any other earnings that people are benefiting from that HMRC may not know about, saying:

“Earnings of less than £1000 in one tax year are not considered taxable income so those who haven’t surpassed that threshold won’t need to register as self-employed or declare this income to HMRC.

“Anyone new to Self-Assessment will need to register before they can send their tax return. People should register on GOV.UK and should allow up to ten working days to receive their Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) which they can then access through HMRC Online Services or the HMRC app. Similarly, anyone who no longer needs to file a Self-Assessment return should inform HMRC now via HMRC Online Services.”

Good advice. If you DO need any help please get in touch with our dedicated team.