Tax doesn’t have to be taxing?
It shouldn’t be taxing if you’ve kept your books properly, or your accountant has, but it’s become taxing for me over the past few days as the HMRC website refuses to let me file my return online. I filed online last year, and this year, while I have been able to log in, I haven’t been able to get any further than that. I have two different user IDs which both log me in and both say I’m not registered for self-assessment, but when I click on ‘Enrol for Service’ I get told that,
ERROR: The details you have entered are either incorrect or you may have already enrolled for this service.
The ‘help’ line wasn’t much. A disinterested woman said she couldn’t really help, so I continued trying to find a solution myself. There wasn’t one. So, £100 fine no doubt.
I still have three hours left, as I type, but I’m afraid I have conceded defeat. I have taken various screen captures so hopefully I will get treated fairly. They have been fair in the past.
I put mine through last week, paid online a few days ago.The money’s gone from my account but it’s not showing as paid on their website. Fortunately I printed the receipt!
Last year I paid by cheque, on time, it came up as ‘paid’ then went back to ‘unpaid’. They claimed the cheque bounced but that wasn’t possible. There were funds to cover it. Neither the bank nor HMRC mentioned this to me, I waited for the money to leave the account but it never did so eventually I phoned them. Cost me interest and a fine too.
If it wasn’t for this tax on account nonsense I could do it much earlier and leave plenty of time to sort out problems. As it is, I’m stuck with waiting until the end of January so I can guess the amount of tax for next year.
Higher expenses this year because I have the new, bigger lab, and lower income than last year so I’m getting ready to be audited! Bound to happen.
Hi Leg-iron,
I’ve only been paying tax as a self-employed person since about 2005/06. After my first year in profit I got clobbered with 18 months tax to pay in one go (incl. 6 mths on account). Nasty. It made me wonder for whose benefit I was working: mine or the Government’s. (I’d hate to ever go back onto benefits, mind you.)
I have also made less money over the past two years and I paid too much tax on a/c last year. Will they take the interest off any fine or interest they charge me?
If we have trouble online, we can no longer rush off the hard copies because they had to be in months go. It’s all a bit naff. You’d think they would make it easier to relieve us of our hard-earned money.
Yep, I was caught out in my first year by the tax-in-advance trick. Fortunately I had a redundancy reserve to fall back on, but it’s not hard to see why most businesses fail in their first year. Double tax can do that.
The tax paid last year should be offset against this year but if you’ve overpaid, don’t expect a quick cheque. Last time I overpaid it took two years for the cheque to arrive.
The problems are all of their own making. If we didn’t have to wait until we could guess at the last two months and set the payments on account, we could put the forms in in the summer. This year I’ll be putting the form in in April to see if I can further reduce the on-account payments. I don’t know if that’s allowed but I’ll try.
It’s better to get the forms done a week or so before the deadline. You still don’t have to pay until close to the end. I don’t leave it to the last day because everyone else does and that can mess up their useless computer sytems.
If you’re a couple of days late, I don’t think you get fined. Just interest, and if you don’t owe anything over last year’s money, that’ll be small. Last year it took over a month to sort out the mess so I did get a fine. Which I paid in cash at the local tax office – no cheques to bounce, no online nonsense, so I knew it was done.
The form is different this year. They’re looking for tax avoiders because they can backdate tax avoidance charges into the time when it was legal.
Lucky for me, I’m not rich.
You have probably found that this morning, the 1st, your account is still locked. My lady, and two of our friends, are still shut out.
Only thing to do is call the 0845 helpline, try not to shout, and see if they can sort it out. You may have to register again.
Refuse to pay any penalty.
Leg-iron,
Fortunately, I’m not a tax-avoider – more like the opposite. I generally don’t claim for everything I should. I’ve never put in for things like cleaning materials and lightbulbs or claimed the VAT back on gas and electric. I end up losing post office receipts sometimes and that’s no good when you’re running a mail order business.
I really ought to be more organised.
Jeff,
I appreciate your comments. No, it’s still not working for me. It would be unfair if I was penalised.