Keep a Watch on the Date

The 31st Jan will be here before we all know it.

All Self Assessment Tax Returns for the year to 5th April 2011 must be filed online by 31st January 2012. (The cut off point for most paper returns has passed)

If you have received a notification from HMRC that they're expecting a self assessment return from your, or you've had any assessable revenue during the tax year, you want to file a taxation assessment by the cut-off point date. Failure to do so will end up in a fine.

Get all your documentation to your accountant as soon as you most likely can. Your accountant will have a sizeable number of other clients who also require a Self Assessment. The more you leave it, the more chance there's that you're going to get a fine for late submission (whether or not there's no outstanding tax to pay).

New Year Resolution “Better Planning

Spend a little time planning for the next year. Even though your books aren't up-to-par this year, don’t hide from the difficulty. Spend some real time now to right your books, implementing new entry systems when necessary and resolve to put a stop to any sloppy habits that may place unnecessary stress on even flourishing companies and their owners. Find a pro who can address and fix these issues.

Don’t Pay too much National Insurance

Ensure sure you don't overpay self-employment National Insurance contributions.

If you're expecting to be both employed and self employed you could be in a position to ‘defer ‘ some of your Class 2 and/or Class 4 National Insurance contributions.

You may then pay what’s due after the end of the tax year when the actual amount has been worked out.

Doing this can make sure you don’t pay too much National Insurance on any self-employment revenue.

Go to form CA72B Application for deferment of payment of Class 2 and/or Class 4 National Insurance contributions.

Are you Aware?

In 2011, more than 1,000 taxpayers submitted their self assessment returns on Christmas Day, HMRC figures have disclosed.

Released figures also show that 102 people saw in the New Year (2012) completing their tax returns. In total, 11,648 filed on New Year’s Eve, while 8,935 people battled hangovers to submit on New Year’s Day.

Accountants Exeter provide a full range of accountancy services