Running a business often involves juggling your time between looking after your client database, searching for new customers, balancing the profit and loss statements and managing the finances. In addition to all the duties involved in managing a business are the tax requirements from HMRC. If you fail to comply with deadlines through the year, you’ll be charged hefty penalties, and possibly face prosecution.
April is the start of the tax year
As April 6 approaches, you may want to consider streamlining some processes to increase tax efficiency. Tax planning can involve claiming specific allowances which have a deadline, or claiming tax refunds from previous years. April also has a deadline for payments of PAYE tax and National Insurance Contributions to reach HMRC for the previous year. In May, all employers have to provide a P60 form for all relevant employees who were employed by them the previous year.
PAYE deadlines
If you run a PAYE scheme for employees, you have specific deadlines you need to meet in order to comply with regulations. In addition to providing a form P60, you must also complete forms P11D and P9D, with details of employee benefits.
Self-assessment deadlines
The self-assessment system requires a tax return to be completed each year. If you complete a paper return, it has to be submitted to HMRC by October 31 every year. Remember that any inaccuracies or errors could result in a fine, so give yourself the time you need to fill it in correctly rather than making it a rush job.
If you complete an online tax return, the deadline is January 31. Research indicates that Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve are popular days to complete a tax return. Payments on account also have to be submitted in January and July each year. If you still owe some tax, it has to be paid by January 31.
Deadlines for VAT
There are also deadlines for completion of VAT tax returns and the payment of VAT to HMRC. These vary, but you will be given due dates by HMRC.
Failure to meet any of the deadlines can result in a large penalty being charged by HMRC, which may attract interest if not paid in a timely manner. Outsourcing to a complete accounting service can remove the stress of meeting all tax deadlines, while ensuring that you don’t have large penalties to pay.
If you would like to discuss the tax deadlines of most relevance to your company, please contact us for an informal chat.