Declaration deadlines

Anything to declare? October is an important month for those with a tax liability to declare to HMRC. There are two deadlines: one for those who haven’t received a request from the Taxman to submit a self-assessment (SA) tax return, and one for those who have.

First up. October 5 is the date to watch out for if you think that you owe tax for 2009/10 but haven’t received a request to submit an SA form. You must notify the Taxman and say why you think you have a tax liability. Common reasons might be where you started to receive a new source of income or made a capital gain during the year.

When to pay. Once you’ve told the Taxman, it’s up to him to ask you to fill in an SA return and pay up. 2009/10 tax is normally due on January 31 2011, but where the Taxman doesn’t ask you to complete an SA form until after January 1 2011 you won’t have to pay until 30 days after his request.

Second deadline. If you’ve already been asked to complete an SA return for 2009/10 and you want to send in the paper version rather than submit it online, it must be with the Taxman by October 31 or you’ll be fined £100. In previous years where you’ve missed the deadline you could reduce the fine to nil by paying the full amount of tax owing by January 31. This escape route has now been closed. Tip. If you miss either of the above deadlines you can still avoid a penalty by registering for online filing and submitting your SA form electronically by January 31; visit http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/online/new.htm to register.