Do I Need to File a Self Assessment Return

Self-assessment Tax Return deadline

– 31 January 2020

2018/19 Self-Assessment Returns need to be filed with HMRC by 31 January 2020 to avoid being penalised

With Christmas and New Year a distraction the deadline is closer than you may think.

Any personal tax owing also needs to be settled by this date. If the tax return is filed after the end of January, you will face an automatic penalty of £100 issued by HMRC, which will increase if the return is delayed further.

How do to know if you need to submit a tax return?

If you filled one in last year then unless you have confirmation from HMRC that you are no longer required to submit a return then I’m afraid you still need to submit.

If you’ve not needed to file a return previously then these are some of the reasons

you will need to submit a return:

o Being a Director of a limited company

o Being self-employed as a sole trader

o Renting out property (if rental income is above £2500)

o If you receive child benefit allowance and one member of the household earns £50,000 a year or more

If you do need to file a return and its your first time then you need to register for self-assessment first before a tax return can be submitted to HMRC and this registration can take a few days to process. Once registered, HMRC issue you with a Unique Tax Reference (UTR) this allows online filing.

If you are at all unsure then we can help, please feel free to contact us for your free initial consultation.