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Don’t forget your tax return . . .

Posted on November 29 2011 at 2:13:17 0 comments

While it is true that Christmas is a time of giving, you would be naive to assume the taxman shares such festive thoughts. On the contrary, the taxman is positively rubbing his hands together with glee at the prospect of additional tax revenues.

Most people are aware that, if you miss HMRC’s tax return filing deadline of 31 January, then you will automatically receive a £100 penalty (imagine the number of mince pies you could buy for that!).

However, if you think you can avoid this penalty simply by completing and returning to HMRC the tax return form that you have received, then you would be wrong. The deadline for filing a paper copy of your tax return has already passed (it expired at the end of October).

So this means your only option is to file your tax return online, or suffer the £100 penalty. In the past, HMRC would not issue the £100 late filing penalty to individuals where the tax return discloses that there is no additional tax to pay. Unfortunately this ‘get out of jail free’ card has now been withdrawn.

Get your tax affairs in order before Christmas
If you have not filed a tax return online before, then you will first need to set up a government gateway account, and enrol for self-assessment. You will then need to activate your new account by entering an activation code that HMRC should send to you by post.

This process can take a number of weeks to complete. You would therefore be prudent to start the ball rolling as soon as possible if you intend to file your own tax return. If you miss the filing deadline because you have not set up your government gateway account in sufficient time, then HMRC will not accept that you have a ‘reasonable excuse’.

Delegate your tax return to a professional advisor
You would not be alone if you are uncertain where to begin with completing your tax return, or if you would rather delegate this time-consuming task to an experienced professional.

You would also have the peace of mind that comes with knowing that your tax return will be correctly completed and submitted on time, and that all available tax reliefs and allowances will be claimed for you.

Engaging a professional person to prepare and submit your tax return on your behalf is unlikely to cost as much as you might think. Andrew Crowe has the enviable experience of having previously worked for leading Big 4 firms, such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte.

More information about Andrew’s professional experience and qualifications can be found on his website.

If you would like to discuss your tax affairs with Andrew, or arrange a meeting in person, then please do not hesitate to call or email him. He would be very pleased to hear from you, and will be available throughout the Christmas period.

Andrew Crowe
Tax & Business Advisor
Tel: 0121 445 0459  
Mob: 07999 541 745
Web: http://www.andrewcrowe.co.uk
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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