HMRC has announced that Self assessment taxpayers will not be charged a 5% late payment penalty if they pay their tax or set up a payment plan by 1 April 2021.
The self assessment payment deadline is 31 January and interest is then charged from 1 February on any amounts outstanding.
Normally, a 5% late payment penalty is also changed on any unpaid tax that is still outstanding on 3 March. However this year, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, HMRC is allowing taxpayers more time to pay or set up a payment plan.
Taxpayers can pay their tax bill or set up monthly installments via a payment plan online at GOV.UK. This will need to be done by midnight on 1 April to prevent being charged a late payment penalty.
The online Time to Pay facility allows taxpayers to spread the cost of their self assessment tax bill into monthly installments up until January 2022.
Taxpayers who are required to make payments on account and are expecting their 2020/21 tax bill is going to be lower than the previous year; for example where loss of earnings are down because of the pandemic, can make a claim to reduce these payments.
Finally, self assessment taxpayers who have yet to file their 2019-20 tax return should file by 28 Feburary to prevent being charged a late filing penalty of £100.
For more information and support on self-assessment please contact us if you wish to speak to a member of our expert team on 0330 22 33 660 and we will be happy to help.