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Almost 70,000 people filed their return on the opening day this year (April 6) and HMRC is encouraging people to do it early and not to leave it until January.
It can also help with budgeting and helping spread the cost of the tax bill. Customers can set up a budget payment plan to make weekly or monthly direct debit payments towards their next Self Assessment tax bill.
Refunds of overpaid tax will be paid as soon as the return has been processed. Customers can also check if they are due a refund in the HMRC app.
In recent years, HMRC has seen more and more customers file their tax returns early. Last year, more than 246,000 people submitted their Self Assessment between 6 and 12 April 2023.
People may need to complete a tax return for the 2023 to 2024 tax year and pay any tax owed if:
- they are a self-employed individual with an income over £1,000
- they have received any untaxed income over £2,500
- they are renting out one or more properties
- they claim Child Benefit and they or their partner have an income above £50,000
- they are a partner in a partnership
- their taxable income earned from savings and investments is more than the £10,000 personal savings allowance
- their taxable income earned from dividends is more than £10,000
- they have paid Capital Gains Tax on assets that were sold for a profit above the Capital Gains threshold
A full list of who needs to complete a tax return is available on GOV.UK.
Pensioners
Pensioners are required to pay Income Tax on any taxable income, including their pension income, above their Personal Allowance threshold. There are different ways to pay any tax owed, depending on the individual’s circumstances, including:
- if they already complete a Self Assessment tax return, they will need to report and pay via this route
- if they have a PAYE tax code, HMRC will automatically collect any tax through their tax code
Alternatively, if a pensioner does not already pay tax via Self Assessment or PAYE, HMRC will send them a Simple Assessment summary. The Simple Assessment will tell them how much Income Tax they need to pay and the deadline – usually by 31 January following the end of the tax year. HMRC produces the Simple Assessment from the information it already holds so people do not need to do anything - there is no form to complete. More information about Simple Assessment is available on GOV.UK.
It is important that customers let HMRC know if there are any changes in details or circumstances such as a new address or name, or if they are no longer self-employed or their business has closed. They should not assume someone else will update HMRC on their behalf. If customers no longer need to do Self Assessment, they will need to tell HMRC.
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Susie Hughes © Shout99 2024
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