The Christmas rush may be over but for many
that means the start of the self assessment
rush. The January 31st self-assessment deadline
is often approached with dread, however,
completing your tax return form within the
given time constraints can be achieved with
the right amount of preparation and some
simple, solid, professional advice, advises
Bristol based accountancy practice Barnes
Hunter.
Chris Barnes at Barnes Hunter comments: “By
following a few simple guidelines self assessment
needn’t be too taxing. First of all,
it is important to check that you have all
the required pages in your tax return ‘package’ and
all the information you need for each type
of income or gain, before making a start.
Following this, you need to decide whether
you would prefer to complete the paper tax
return or file online, although if choosing
the latter option you first need to register
on the site which can take up to a week and
this is thus inadvisable for late-filers."
Mr. Barnes concludes: “Late filing
can make for a bad business ethic so if you
think you are heading into difficulty consult
a chartered accountant. Not only does late
submission incur a penalty charge which is
reportedly set to increase greatly over the
next few years, but it can also make it difficult
to distinguish between tax owed between the
concluding and pending years.”
Self-assessment describes the method in
place by which certain people have to assess
their own tax liability rather than have
their local HM Revenue and Customs district
office carry out the assessment for them.
The law states anyone issued with a ‘Self
Assessment tax return’ must complete
and return the form by 31st January, with
exceptions given only for abnormal circumstances.
Failure to do so will result in the automatic
penalty of £100, with additional surcharges
for continued non-compliance.
For more information please phone +44
(0)117 930 0061.
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