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IT Contractors should remember 31st Jan tax return deadline

Published on Jan 5, 2009 |

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It's time to get those tax returns in again! IT contractors should ensure they submit their forms online and pay any tax owed by the 31st January deadline.

With this in mind, leading accountancy firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, have provided some tips to help get your return right:

DO

• read all the questions carefully;


• get all relevant paperwork together – such as P60s and P11Ds - before starting;


• make sure the benefits listed tie up to the P11D (Benefits Statement) and that appropriate expense claims are made;


• remember that not all benefits are taxable. Although State Pensions and Job Seekers Allowance are, benefits such as Child Benefit are not;


• include personal pension contributions from post tax earnings;


• list Gift Aid payments and any other charitable donations and enter the amounts that were actually given;
  make sure the bank or building society interest received plus the tax that has been deducted (usually 20%) add up to the gross amount;


• register for the HMRC online filing system by the 22 January to ensure the activation pin is sent out in time. You can register and read more on self assessment here.

• miss out any questions that are set;


• enter income from ISAs or PEPs;


• leave it until the last minute - mistakes are more likely to be made if the process is rushed. The online filing system also gets very busy during the last two weeks before the deadline;


• include pension contributions to an employer's pension plan deducted directly from pre-tax earnings;


• forget to complete all the relevant supplementary pages e.g. employment or land and property sheets;


• forget to tick the box if a repayment is due and include the bank account details where the money should be sent to;


• forget that any tax owed needs to be paid by 31 January – it's not just a case of getting the form in.