Reasons to File your Tax Return Early

Whilst we all don\’t like the idea of dealing with our taxes, there are some reasons why we really should be pro-active when it comes to submitting these:-

1. If you are due a refund, this will be issued by HMRC within 30 days of submission;
2. Tax payments are still due at their normal payment time, so 31 January for balancing payment and first payment on account, and 31 July for second payment on account. An early submission gives you time to plan;
3. Where payments on accounts are due (if your tax is over £1,000) we can apply to reduce these if we expect profits to be down in the following year (HMRC do have the ability to charge interest if this is not the case). Preparing early allows you to know exactly what your tax is, and where possible reduce the payments on account;
4. If your taxes are under £3,000 and you mainly pay tax via PAYE, an earlier submission allows for the tax to be deducted from your salary, so you can manage your cashflow and pay the tax monthly, rather than all at once;
5. Contacting HMRC with issues tends to be easier outside of the peak times (April, July and January) so submitting earlier provides a smoother process;
6. If there is missing information, it gives you time to obtain this;
7. Reduces the risks of penalties for late filing and late payment.

And with the tax returns due in January, an earlier submission avoids spoiling Christmas with no surprise bill shortly afterwards!