January 6th, 2017.



The Chartered Institute of Taxation is urging taxpayers to complete their online Self-Assessment returns in good time ahead of the January 31 deadline or risk a £100 fine.

The deadline for sending the 2015/16 tax return to HMRC and paying any tax owed is the 31st of  January 2017. Last year, 10.39 million SA returns were filed on time, but 870,000 people missed the filing deadline leaving themselves facing a £100 penalty. With self-employment in the UK now at record levels, it is expected that more people than ever will be required to file an SA return this year.

The tax institute points out that this is the first year that taxpayers can submit their tax return using their Personal Tax Account. And with the introduction of the government’s Making Tax Digital programme from April 2018, this year will also be one of the last times that the SA return will have to be submitted in its current format.

As in previous years, the SA return can also be filed using an HMRC Online Account which can take up to ten days to set up.

Late returns could incur a fine
John Cullinane, CIOT’s tax policy director, says, ‘Greater numbers of people in self-employment is a growing feature of the UK’s economy and unfortunately, one of the first things they need to think about in 2017 is tax.‘We urge self-employed people not to begin their new relationship with HMRC with a £100 fine by taking advantage of the tax authority’s online offerings, such as accessing their new Personal Tax Account to submit their SA return and follow the guidance on Gov.uk.’


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