HMRC confirms £70 weekly charges for UK households | Personal Finance | Finance

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed £70 weekly charges for UK households from May as a penalty for filing Self Assessment tax returns late. Anyone who failed to send their tax return to HMRC by the deadline of January 31 this year will have already received an £100 fixed penalty, even if they had no tax to pay, or if any tax due was paid on time.

But if you still haven’t submitted it, the penalties increase the longer you leave it, with taxpayers now facing additional daily penalties from May. HMRC confirmed it will begin issuing these daily penalties three months after the initial January 31 filing deadline (so from May 1), meaning these fines are currently in the process of being handed out to late filers. The daily penalties are worth £10 per day, which means households face being slapped with weekly charges of up to £70 from HMRC until the tax return is submitted.

The penalties can reach up to a maximum of £900 over a 90 day period, after which the penalty fee increases again for those who still haven’t filed six months after the deadline.

This further penalty is set at 5% of the tax due, or £300 – whichever is higher – and after 12 months, another 5% – or £300 – will be added.

If you pay your tax late, you’ll also get penalties of 5% of the tax unpaid at 30 days, six months and 12 months. If tax remains unpaid after the deadline, interest will also be charged on the amount owed in addition to the penalties above.

Confirming the penalties for late Self Assessment tax returns, HMRC said: “If you send your tax return late you’ll get the following late filing penalties:

• an initial £100 penalty
• after 3 months, additional daily penalties of £10 per day, up to a maximum of £900
• after 6 months, a further penalty of 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater
• after 12 months, another 5% or £300 charge, whichever is greater

“To avoid this, send your Self Assessment tax return as soon as possible. All partners will be charged a penalty if a partnership tax return is late.

“If you pay your tax late you’ll get penalties of 5% of the tax unpaid at:

“You’ll also be charged interest on the amount owed. To avoid this, pay your Self Assessment tax bill as soon as possible.”

HMRC says penalties must be paid within 30 days of the date on the penalty notice and you’ll be charged interest if you pay after the deadline.

If the payment deadline falls on a weekend or Bank Holiday, make sure your payment reaches HMRC on the last working day before it, unless you’re paying by Faster Payments.

You can pay your penalty through your online bank account, by bank transfer, direct debit, at your bank or building society, or via a cheque through the post.

Speaking after the submission deadline in January, Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Chief Customer Officer, said: “Thank you to the millions of people and agents who filed their Self Assessment tax return and paid any tax owed by 31 January.

“Anyone who missed the deadline should file their return as soon as possible, as penalties and late payment interest may be charged.

“HMRC digital channels are always the quickest and easiest way for people to sort their tax affairs. Search ‘Self Assessment’ on GOV.UK to find out more.”

Reasons for not paying your tax bill, or arranging a payment plan, by the January 31 deadline will be considered individually and only those who provide a reasonable excuse may avoid a penalty, while those without will face a fine. HMRC says a reasonable excuse can include any of the following:

You must send your tax return or payment as soon as possible after your reasonable excuse is resolved and you cannot blame a cheque being bounced or a failed payment for missing the deadline, or say you submitted it late because HMRC didn’t send you a reminder.