WIREDGOV

Deadline day for paper tax returns

News Release issued by the COI News Distribution Service on 20 October 2011

With the 31 October deadline for paper tax returns just days away, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) is urging anyone who hasn’t yet filed their paper return to act now, to avoid a late-filing penalty.

If you send in a paper tax return on or after 1 November, you will now be hit with a £100 penalty – even if there is no tax to pay or the tax due is paid on time – following the introduction of a new penalty regime this year. The longer you delay, the more you'll have to pay, as there are further late-filing penalties after three, six and twelve months.

If you can’t send your paper return by 31 October, you can still avoid a penalty by sending your tax return online instead. However, if you do send a paper return after the 31 October deadline, you cannot avoid the initial £100 penalty by subsequently filing online.

To find out more about the October deadline and sending a paper tax return, go to www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/deadline-news.htm

If you send your tax return online, you get an extra three months to send it, as the deadline is 31 January. There are lots of other advantages too:

* your tax is calculated automatically;

* you get an immediate online acknowledgement; and

* your tax return is processed faster, so any money that you are owed is repaid more quickly.

Registering for HMRC Online Services is simple – just go to www.hmrc.gov.uk/online/

For help and advice on completing a return, visit www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/ or call the Self Assessment helpline on 0845 9000 444.

Notes to Editors

1. Just over 10 million Self Assessment returns/notices to complete a tax return have been sent out by HMRC for the 2010/11 tax year.

2. The new penalties for late Self Assessment returns are:

* an initial £100 fixed penalty, which will now apply even if there is no tax to pay, or if the tax due is paid on time;

* after 3 months, additional daily penalties of £10 per day, up to a maximum of £900;

* after 6 months, a further penalty of 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater; and

* after 12 months, another 5% or £300 charge, whichever is greater. In serious cases, the penalty after 12 months can be up to 100% of the tax due.

3. There are also additional new penalties for paying late of 5% of the tax unpaid at: 30 days; 6 months; and 12 months.

4. Further information on the new penalties is available from the HMRC website at www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/deadlines-penalties.htm

NAT 83/11

Issued by HM Revenue & Customs Press Office
Press enquiries only please contact:

Contacts:

HM Revenue & Customs Press Office
HMRC-Press-office.NDSmanagement@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk

Andrew Bennett
Phone: 020 7147 0051
andrew.bennett3@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk

HMRC Out of Hours
Phone: 07860 359544
NDS.HMRC@coi.gsi.gov.uk