Self-employment is easier said than done, and it entails a great deal of responsibility. You must look after your employees, handle your money, pay your taxes, and submit your own tax returns.
Whether self-employed or not, individuals are required to pay income tax regardless of their source of income. However, self-employed earners frequently fail to file their taxes due to a regular accounting procedure.
What steps must be taken to file self-employment tax in the United Kingdom?
1. Fill out the self-assessment form provided by HMRC.
• You must notify the taxman of your self-employment status by registering for self-assessment on the HMRC website.
• Bear in mind the deadline: you have until October 5th after the end of the tax year in which you registered for self-employment to register or face fines. Note that the budget year begins on April 6th. So, if you started working by yourself in February, you have eight months to register.
• Your UTR-a letter should arrive within ten days with your 10-digit unique taxpayer reference (UTR)number. When it comes to paying taxes, you'll need this.
• Your online account-HMRC will set up your online self-assessment account so that you may file your tax return when it's due.
2. Register for VAT.
• You may also register for VAT while you're at it. Consumers pay value-added tax on most, but not all, products and services in the UK, which is presently fixed at 20%.
• If your taxable income exceeds £85,000 in a tax year, you must register with HMRC. It's entirely up to you if you earn less.
• You'll receive a certificate verifying your VAT number as well as important dates for submitting your first return and payment.
• It may take up to a month for your certificate to arrive, during which time you will be unable to charge or show VAT on your invoice. You'll still have to pay the tax collector.
• Inform your consumers that you will be charging more to pay the tax during this period and will reissue invoices once you receive your VAT number.
Registering for VAT gives you a greater reputation and professionalism, as well as more privacy when it comes to your revenues.
Filling your tax return
The tax return is divided into two sections. The major portion, which covers employment income, pensions, charity contributions, and benefits. Supplementary pages for persons with income to report through self-employment, real estate, investment gains, being a company director, and working abroad.
You have the option of filing your return online or on paper, but different deadlines apply. The government also plans to phase out paper returns as part of its Making Tax Digital initiative, which will launch in April 2022.
How do I fill in an online tax return?
Here are our step-by-step instructions on what everything means and how to do it if you're filing online:
• Navigate to the "file your self-assessment" page after logging in using your Government Gateway user ID. When you first register for online services, you only have to enter your UTR number once.
• Make sure your personal information is up to date, such as your residence and marital status, as well as your date of birth, as this might affect your allowances.
• Follow HMRC's lead: the system reacts to the information you provide, so any elements that aren't necessary will be eliminated. You won't be able to advance unless you respond to HMRC's questions.
• Fill out your return - the areas that need to be completed will be given to you based on the answers you provide. When you hit "next," your progress will be stored, so don't worry if you need to go for missing papers while logged out.
• Enter your costs - there are some tight requirements here: they must be tax-deductible business expenses. See our freelancers ' guide for more information on what you may and cannot claim as costs.
• Employed people should have their P60s available, as well as their P11Ds if they receive any work perks throughout the year, such as a company car or health insurance. Calculations are not required; fill in the figures straight from these papers.
• Submit your return to HMRC; you will get confirmation after you have done so. Now all you have to do is make sure you pay your taxes on time - or set up a payment plan - before the deadline of January 31. If you can't recall how much you owe, go to the site.
As the government and tax officials keep a tight eye on tax evaders, it is in everyone's best interest to be tax compliant and submit their Self Employment Tax Return. Contact us to learn about the many facets of self-employment tax in the United Kingdom.
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