Thousands submit their self-assessment tax returns on Christmas Day

With thousands opting to give themselves the gift of tax reporting efficiency either side of tucking into their Christmas turkeys, it demonstrates the growing urgency for taxpayers to get their 2022-23 affairs in order. 

According to official data from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), 25,769 people submitted their self-assessment tax returns over Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Meanwhile a further 25,593 taxpayers filed their tax returns online on New Year’s Eve. 

The deadline for 2022-23 online tax returns is fast approaching on 31st January, with anyone missing the boat set to face an automatic £100 late-filing penalty. 

Myrtle Lloyd, Director-General for Customer Services, HMRC, said: “Our Christmas Day filers proved that there is no time like the present to get started on self-assessment. 

“There’s no need to delay, getting your tax return completed ahead of the 31st January deadline means less stress and longer to work out payment options.” 

5.7 million taxpayers have not submitted their tax returns

HMRC has revealed that almost 5.7 million taxpayers are yet to submit their 2022-23 self-assessment tax returns. This means there’ll be upwards of 190,000 people per day logging on and finalising their returns via the GOV.UK website. 

Those who leave it too late to submit and pay their returns may incur financial penalties if they don’t have a reasonable excuse for missing the deadline. 

Anyone three months late will be hit with £10 daily fines, up to a maximum of £900. Tax returns six months overdue will result in taxpayers facing another penalty worth 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater. The same fine is issued to anyone with a tax return that’s 12 months late. 

The sooner you submit your self-assessment tax return and calculate how much tax you need to pay, the sooner you can get clarity over your financial position. 

HMRC may even be able to assist with a Time to Pay payment plan, open to taxpayers owing less than £30,000. 

Date published 2 Jan 2024

Fraser McKay, MCIPR (Accredited)

Fraser is a highly experienced journalist and Accredited PR Professional and joined TaxAssist in 2016. He writes articles covering a wide range of topics relating to small businesses and accounting. In addition, Fraser provides communications training to the network, as well as looking after TaxAssist Accountants' national and local social media channels.

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