Are you one of the 9.61 million people who filed their tax return on time this year? HMRC data reveals that this year marked the largest number of individuals ever to get their returns in on time, before the two deadlines; 31 October for paper returns and 31 January for filing online. Of this number, 7.93 million were completed online, while the remaining 1.68 million were paper returns filed by post. According to HMRC, 10.34 million people were required to complete self-assessment tax returns for the 2011-12 tax year, meaning that 92.9 per cent met the return deadlines.
However, it seems that many chose to put off their returns until the very last minute. HMRC received more than half a million returns on 31 January, its busiest recorded day. The busiest period occurred between 16:00 and 17:00, when 46,000 – more than 12 per second – were received. The Christmas holidays were also a busy period for returns, with 1,548 sending their returns in on Christmas Day and 4,685 on Boxing Day. Around 27,161 were also filed online on New Year’s Eve and a further 12,077 submitted on New Year’s Day.
Those who failed to submit a return will have already incurred a £100 late-filing penalty, with additional penalties being incurred after that. HMRC has advised those who have yet to submit their return to do so as soon as possible and pay any outstanding tax owed.
Don’t leave filing your returns until the last minute. We can help you file your self-assessment tax returns accurately and on time.