Self Assessments

Self Assessment involves completing an online or paper tax return in order to tell HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) about your income and capital gains (profits on the sale of certain assets), or to claim tax allowances or reliefs against your tax bill. We use the figures on the tax return to work out your tax bill, or you can work it out yourself.

There are different types of tax return and different 'supplementary pages' you may need to complete depending on your circumstances. There are also deadlines for sending your tax return in - and penalties and interest charges if it arrives late.

If you pay tax on your earnings or pensions through PAYE (Pay As You Earn) your employer or pension provider deducts tax on our behalf and you won't usually need to complete a tax return. In these HMRC we'll normally also ask them to use the PAYE system to deduct any tax you may owe on a State Pension or other taxable income (eg investment or rental income) up to a certain level.
But if you have more complicated tax affairs you may need to complete a tax return. There are also certain circumstances in which you will always need to complete a tax return - for example if you're self-employed, a company director or a trustee or if you have foreign income.

Tax return deadlines and late return penalties
31 October: Paper returns
If you are sent a notice to complete a tax return before or on 31 July and you want to send HMRC a paper return you must send the completed return back by 31 October.
If you are sent a notice to complete a tax return after 31 July you must send the completed paper tax return back by the later of 31 October or three months following the date of issue of the notice.
For paper returns that reach HMRC by this date we will:
• calculate your tax for you
• tell you what to pay by the following 31 January
• request HMRC to collect tax through your tax code (if possible) where you owe less than £2,000 unless you tell us otherwise.
If the paper return arrives after this deadline you'll be charged an automatic £100 penalty.
(Late Partnership returns attract a £100 penalty for each partner. Late Trust and Estate returns result in a £100 charge to the trust or estate.)
(There are a very few cases where online tax returns can't be made. In these cases the deadline by which the paper return must reach us is 31 January. See 'Deadlines for tax returns that can't be sent online' below.)
30 December: Online returns (for tax to be collected through your tax code)
If you send HMRC your tax return online you must send it back by this date if you want HMRC to collect tax through your tax code (if possible) where you owe less than £2,000. Otherwise you can send it to us up to 31 January.
31 January: Online returns
Where a notice to complete a tax return is issued before 31 October this is the deadline for sending back an online tax return.
Where a notice to file a tax return is issued after 31 October the deadline to send it back is three months after the date of issue of the notice.
If it arrives after this deadline you'll be charged an automatic £100 penalty.
(This is also the deadline for paper returns where there isn't the option to file the return online.)
(Late Partnership returns attract a £100 penalty for each partner. Late Trust and Estate returns result in a £100 charge to the trust or estate.)

Below is a list of services which we should be able to assist you with
• Full UK tax return preparation, including completion of supplement pages for employment , non residence, capital gains, self employment, land & property (rental income), foreign and share schemes.
• Calculation of UK tax due or refundable where the tax return itself has already been prepared, a review process can also be engaged such that we will review the entries made to determine if any obvious errors are evident. Obviously without backup material no guarantee can be given that the return is complete and accurate as access to all supporting details would be required to confirm this, however a mistake such as a box total not being correct or administrative details not complete can be picked up at this stage.
• Liaison, by provision of authorisation, with the Inland Revenue in matters of enquiries, tax return audits and statements.