Over the past few months, we have helped our clients file their self-assessment tax returns for 2022/23. The deadline for submission and payment was 31 January 2024. We have written this blog to advise anyone who has been unable to submit a tax return or pay their tax bill on time.

If you have recently set up your business or if you are still unsure about whether you need to complete a tax return or not, then check if any of the below criteria apply to you:

• you were self-employed as a ‘sole trader’ and earned more than £1,000 (before taking off anything you can claim tax relief on)
• you were a partner in a business partnership.
• you had a total taxable income of more than £100,000.
• you had to pay Capital Gains Tax when you sold or ‘disposed of’ something that increased in value.
• you had to pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge 

You may also need to send a tax return if you have any untaxed income, such as:

• some COVID-19 grant or support payments.
• money from renting out a property.
• tips and commission
• income from savings, investments, and dividends
• foreign income

What you need to do if file your tax return late

If you didn’t manage to submit your tax return on time or have just realised that you should have submitted a tax return, you may need to pay a penalty.

The late filing penalty is £100 if your tax return is up to 3 months late. If you submit it later, the penalty charge will increase. In addition, you will be charged interest on late payments. You can determine how much penalty you need to pay by using this calculator – Estimate your penalty.

What to do if you are struggling to pay your tax bill

If you managed to file your tax return on time but don’t think you will be able to pay the tax owed in full then it is important to contact the HMRC as soon as possible.

They are very supportive and will look at ways to help you make the payments. They can offer a ‘Time to Pay’ arrangement, this allows you to set up a payment plan based on what you can afford.

You can set up a payment plan online if you:

• have filed your latest tax return
• owe £30,000 or less
• are within 60 days of the payment deadline
• do not have any other payment plans or debts with HMRC

HMRC will ask you about your income and spending when you set up your plan. For more information on support available, click on this link – If you cannot pay your tax bill on time.

If you would like any advice from our team at Watson Knipe, even if you are not our current client, we are more than happy to help. You can call us on 01623 490 120 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.