Tax Return Process

if you are a Self-employed workers or a self-assessment then you will have to send a tax return to the HMRC. A tax return is a form on which you report details of your taxable income. HMRC uses the information you provide to work out your tax bill – or whether you are due a refund.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will send a tax return each tax year. The tax year runs from 6 April one year to 5 April the next. If you receive a tax return, then you are required by law to fill it in.

You’ll need to send a tax return if, in the last tax year:

·         you were self-employed – you can deduct allowable expenses

·         you got £2,500 or more in untaxed income, for example from tips or renting out a property – contact the helpline if it was less than £2,500

·         your income from savings or investments was £10,000 or more before tax

·         your income from dividends from shares was £10,000 or more before tax

·         you made profits from selling things like shares, a second home or other chargeable assets and need to pay Capital Gains Tax

·         you were a company director – unless it was for a non-profit organisation (such as a charity) and you didn’t get any pay or benefits, like a company car

·         your income (or your partner’s) was over £50,000 and one of you claimed Child Benefit

·         you had income from abroad that you needed to pay tax on

·         you lived abroad and had a UK income

·         your income was over £100,000

·         you were a trustee of a trust or registered pension scheme

·         you had a P800 from HMRC saying you didn’t pay enough tax last year – and you didn’t pay what you owe through your tax code or with a voluntary payment

How to File An Online Tax Return

The main advantage in filing your tax return online the extended deadline, you will have until 31 January 2018 to submit your return, which mean that you have an extra three months to gather your information.

If you never filed an online tax return before, you need to register in advance.

To do so, visit the HMRC website. Click on the ‘Self-Assessment’ option under the ‘Do it online’ heading. If you’re a new user, click on the ‘Register’ button, then select ‘Individual’, followed by ‘Self-Assessment (SA)’.

You need to create user ID and password, after the HMRC will send you a confirmation code by post, which allows you to file online which can take up to seven days to arrive.

Once you get the confirmation code, you have to activate your online HRMC account within 28 days of the date shown on the letter sent to you – otherwise the code will expire and you’ll need to request another one.

HMRC’s online service allows users to submit details of their income from: 

  • employment
  • self-employment
  • individual partnership – to report your share of a partnership’s profit or loss
  • land and property
  • capital gains
  • foreign income.

Once you have logged on to your online tax return, there are five steps to follow:

  • Check your personal details.
  • Tailor the return – choose to fill in all the sections that fit your circumstances.
  • Fill in the figures on your return. The online program includes handy reminders about where you can find the information to fill in the current section (eg your P11D, P60 or payslips).
  • Check the return – make sure everything is correct and complete.
  • Submit your return. When you do, you will get an on-screen confirmation and code number.

Once you’ve submitted your tax return online, you’ll receive an on-screen confirmation message, together with a reference number from HMRC.

the deadline for online submissions of self-assessment is the 31 January, you can file your tax return any time between the end of the tax year in April, so If don’t have all the details you will need to submit the tax return, you may provide provisional figures, so you don’t delay filing your tax return. You should mention this in the Any other information box on a paper return or in the white space on an online return. You should replace any provisional figures with the final ones as soon as you know them.

Finally, if you face any issues doing your tax return online, call up the helpline at 0300 200 3310 experience the operatives are really helpful, and they are very much on your side.