By Lyndsey Hall
According to a report by the BBC, around 890,000 people failed to file their self-assessment tax return by midnight on January 31st, and now face a fine of at least £100.
The number of people who failed to meet the deadline has increased by 190,000 since last year; however, the number who did manage to file their return in time has also increased, with 210,000 more than last year submitting their returns on time. 85% of all tax returns were filed online this year; January 31st was the busiest day, as usual, with 980,000 returns filed on Saturday alone. However, the busiest hour was between 1pm and 2pm on January 30th, with returns being filed at a rate of 830 per minute! 4.3 million returns were submitted during January in total.
1,173 tax returns were filed on Christmas Day in 2014!
If you missed the deadline, you will be automatically fined £100, even if you don’t owe a penny. If you still haven’t submitted your tax return in 3 months, your fine will start to increase by £10 per day. After 6 months, 5% of your total tax bill, or £300, whichever is greater, will be added. And after 12 months, another 5% or £300 will be lumped on top.
It pays to complete your tax return on time, especially if you have little or nothing to pay.
Unfortunately, it seems men are more likely to miss the deadline, with 394 for every 10,000 returns being after the deadline, compared to 358 women.
According to the Independent, workers in the fishing, agriculture and forestry industry are most likely to meet the deadline, with just 109 late returns for every 10,000. Whereas, the information and communications industry was most likely to file their returns late, with 390 per 10,000 missing the deadline.
If you are yet to file your self-assessment tax return, don’t panic, help is at hand. Speak to an advisor without delay to avoid incurring any further fines.
Did you manage to get your return in on time? Did you find the process easy this year? We’d love to hear from you in the Comments or on Twitter or Facebook.
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