RSM is warning Scottish taxpayers that have yet to file their tax return for the 2014/15 tax year not to get too comfortable - the abolition of tax returns hasn’t happened yet, and penalties still remain for those who miss the 31 January deadline.
Stephen Hay, RSM’s Head of Tax in Scotland gives his tips for taxpayers yet to submit their return…
- If you had income or capital gains during the 2014/15 year which needs to be taxed, then you should have already told HMRC. It’s not too late to do so, but time is running out and so you need to register as soon as possible. You will be charged a penalty if you miss this deadline but have not paid the related tax by 31 January.
- When registering, it will take about ten days to get the user ID and password needed through the post - 21 days if you live abroad. So you must get your skates on if you haven’t registered yet - there’s still a chance that your password might arrive in time if you do live abroad.
- Even if you have just one extra source of income or a capital gain which needs taxing, you will need to enter all of your income for the year - even from sources where the correct amount of tax has already been deducted, as well as deductions such as pensions or charitable contributions. Make sure you have all of the information to hand, and request this information from your employer, bank or from other sources of income beforehand.
- Remember to include all sources of income including refunds. Those taxpayers that have claimed refunds from mis-sold PPI cover which have been repaid with interest will have to pay additional tax if they are a higher or additional rate taxpayer.
- Any tax due will need to be paid by 31 January plus, if the liability is on an income source, then it may be the case that you have to make a payment on account for the coming year of 50%. So your tax payment may be higher than you expect. If the income source won’t be recurring, then you need to claim to reduce any payment on account when filing your tax return - otherwise you will face interest charges.
- If you are struggling to obtain all the information to fill out your return, then it may be possible to file a provisional tax return in the meantime.
Stephen Hay said: ‘The 31st January deadline is on a Sunday, so if you do leave filing your return until the last minute then it’s likely that there will be no-one around in HMRC if you need help. It’s best to get it over and done with now, as delaying it any longer could run the risk of your having to pay a hefty fine which, after the festive period, would be a real headache for most of us.’