HM Revenue and customs are urging business owners and the self-employed to make sure they do not miss the tax deadline, amidst calls from business groups for a more ‘reassuring’ system.
Any tax returns received by HMRC after January 31 will incur a £100 fine and interest will be charged on any outstanding money owed.
Mike Shipp, director of self assessment at HMRC, urged people to get their returns in now and ‘beat the deadline’.
However, Simon Sweetman, Federation of Small Businesses’ (FSB) tax spokesperson, believes it is not always possible to get tax returns in early.
“The self-assessment form is just one of the many important tasks involved in running a business and there can be many reasons, both personal and business-related, why the self-employed and owners of small businesses need right up to January 31 to complete it,” Sweetman explained.
“But there is no excuse for HMRC not to be fully prepared for the inevitable surge of tax returns in the run up to the deadline. We urge them to make sure that they allocate adequate staff and resources to cope with the influx.”
The FSB has expressed concern over HMRC’s refusal to guarantee a receipt for those handing in paper returns.
The organisation said small businesses and the self-employed ‘must get reassurance that their tax return has been logged and a receipt to prove it’.
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