Tax legislation is changing all the time so it is important to be up to date and to know what you can and cannot claim.
There is also likely to be a tightening up of the system in terms of penalties charged for late, incomplete or inaccurate returns for both personal and company submissions.
The Times Online reported the following on the 27/01/07:
"Nearly one million people have been sent a penalty notice last year because they didn't get their self assessment returns in on time or failed to pay the tax they owe."
There are also similar problems with the filing by Companies of the Corporation Tax return.
The National Audit Office issued a press notice on the 13/12/06 which stated that:
"Over the last three years, the number of company tax returns filed on time has remained broadly stable at 77 - 79%. At the end of March 2006, around 160,000 company tax returns were still outstanding more than twelve months after they should have been filed."
The current penalties for late filing are £100 for self assessment i.e. individuals and £100 for the Corporation Tax return i.e. for companies. It has been suggested that these penalties may be increased to £250. In addition to these penalties, there is also interest charged on late payment of tax currently at 7.5%.
At C & M Services, we aim to submit all our returns to HMRC online. This saves time in processing paperwork and also means you know straight away what your tax bill is likely to be.
It therefore pays to have your tax returns completed properly and on time - you could be able to claim more than you think and it could save you money.
