Don’t leave it too late – file early

Ok we all know that the deadline for filing your tax return for 2017/18 is a long way in the future but did you know that for the 2016/17 tax year some 758,000 tax returns were submitted on the last day of filing to avoid a late filing penalty and of those just over 30,000 were filed in the last hour !!

Why so many leave it so late is to a large extent human nature but there are many reasons to file early, including the following :

The sooner you file, the sooner any refund that you are due will be issued .

• If you are in receipt of benefits or tax credits, your claim needs to be renewed by 31^st July and to do this accurately you need to know your income.Yes, you can supply estimates, but providing actual figures avoids any under or over payments arising.
• The sooner you file your return, the sooner your tax position is established. At the very least this gives you more time to budget for any sum due, but if done by 31^st July it could lead to a lower payment on account being requested.
• If you are self-employed or running your own company and looking to move house or re-mortgage, it is highly likely that any lender will require your latest tax calculation and tax overviews. With your tax return completed, this information is readily available leading to no delays in the process of obtaining a mortgage or re-mortgaging .
• If you are an employee owing less than £3000 and file before 30 December there is the potential for any tax owed being collected via your tax code, hence avoiding any payment being made directly to HMRC

It avoids the last minute stress for us all !!!!

The notices to submit a return for 2017/18 have now been issued and so if you want to file earlier this year just contact your nearest Perrys office .

Article written by Mark Day