It is important to understand the dates that the HMRC works to so that you can avoid any penalties. In this blog post, we look at a number of important HMRC dates.
Tax Year
Unlike the US tax year which is based on a calendar year, in the UK the tax year runs from the 6th April and ended on 5th April the following year.
The reason for this are too long to add to this post but it goes backs hundreds of years and relates to the differences between the Julian and Gregorian calendars. If you are interested, you can read the full story over on Wikipedia.
CIS Contractor Deadlines
If you are a CIS Contractor paying CIS Subcontractors, then you need to send monthly returns to the HMRC. These are for CIS payments made in the previous tax month. These tax months run from the 6th of one month to the 5th of the following month.
These monthly payments needs to be paid within 14 days of the tax month which end on the 5th day of the month. This means that the payment must reach the HMRC by the 19th of the current month.
For example, if you’re making a return for the month of 6th April to 5th May, it must reach HMRC by 19th May.
Self Assessment Deadlines
If you are filing a paper return, then the deadline is 31st October in the year of the end of the tax year.
If you are sending a return online then the deadline date is 31st January in the following year of the end of the tax year.