insideKENT Magazine Issue 80 - November 2018 | Page 203

BUSINESS THE ONLINE DEADLINE IS LOOMING BY RICK SCHOFIELD, TAX PARTNER AT WILKINS KENNEDY ASHFORD THE DEADLINE TO SUBMIT YOUR TAX RETURN BY PAPER HAS ALREADY PASSED. YOU STILL HAVE TIME TO FILE YOUR RETURN ONLINE, BUT THE DEADLINE OF 31 JANUARY IS COMING UP FAST. HERE’S A ROUGH GUIDE TO SELF-ASSESSMENT, WHO SHOULD FILE A RETURN AND WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU MISS THE DEADLINE. WHO NEEDS ONE If you are self-employed then you will need to file a tax return. Even if your self- employment is not a full-time occupation, for example, if you run a part-time business or get income from a property portfolio, you will still need to be prepared. HMRC will contact you if you are required to fill in a tax return, but you can also check out your status online here: hmrc.gov.uk/sa/need-tax-return.htm NO INCOME? NO ESCAPE! Even if you don’t owe any tax, or you didn’t do any trade, you will still need to submit a return. The clue is in the title – tax is collected on a self-assessment basis so you cannot rely on HMRC to ask for a tax return. You can check whether you need to file a tax return at www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax- returns/who-must-send-a-tax-return. Even if you don’t owe any tax you can’t escape a fine if you miss the deadline, you will be hit with £100 penalty, with additional penalties the longer you leave it. Ignorance is no excuse! NO EXCUSES HMRC has published some of the greatest tales ever told as to why people have not submitted their tax returns on time. Whilst cruising around in a yacht or your goldfish dying may seem like plausible excuses, they are not in the eyes of HMRC. Unless there has been any technological issues on HMRC’s side, for example if their site is down, or you have been subjected to floods and your records have been destroyed, then you will need to face up to the fact that there is little excuse for not filing your return on time. WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU MISS THE DEADLINE? You will face an instant fine of £100. You will then have three months from 31 January to complete your tax return before your £100 fine will increase – but that doesn’t mean you can delay it! If it is still outstanding after 3 months there is a further fine of £300 plus, you will be charged a daily penalty of £10 per day up to the maximum amount of £900. If you miss the deadline by six months there will be a further penalty of £300 or 5% of the tax owing if this is greater. You’ll incur interest on the amount you owe as well, but if you are a multiple offender then you risk making yourself vulnerable to an inspection from HMRC. If you’ve failed to keep sufficient records to produce an accurate tax return, and HMRC does come knocking, you could face a further fine of up to £3,000. across all sectors to file their tax returns. We can also help you to uncover any hidden opportunities for tax relief, pension contributions or Gift Aid payments. For example, did you know that subscriptions to professional bodies are tax deductible? Have you looked at any business mileage that has not been recompensed by the company? These are all things that we can do to help you. Contact us at our offices in Ashford, Canterbury, Maidstone, Orpington and Sandwich to see how we can help. Local offices: Ashford: 01233 629 255 / Canterbury: 01227 454 861 Maidstone: 01622 690 666 / Orpington: 01689 827 505 Sandwich: 01304 249 997 TIPS FOR GETTING IT IN ON TIME Aim to file your return at your earliest opportunity, before Christmas and other holidays get in the way. Planning ahead is the best and only way to avoid penalties, so don’t put it off! Have your UTR code ready and your National Insurance number to hand. Don’t forget your accountants as they will be the lifeline you need when it comes to submitting your return – paper or online. Here at Wilkins Kennedy, we work with the owners of hundreds of businesses of all sizes from [email protected] www.wilkinskennedy.com wilkinskennedy wilkinskennedy 203