Late with your tax return? Keep calm and read our tips

Missing the self assessment filing deadline

If HMRC sent you a notice to file a self assessment tax return for 2023/24, but you missed the filing deadline, you will receive a £100 late filing penalty from HMRC. Further penalties will be issued the longer the tax return is outstanding. For most people, the deadline to submit the 2023/24 tax return online was 31 January 2025.

Getting back on track

Maybe you submitted the return late and are now unsure what to do about the late filing penalty? Perhaps you still haven’t done the tax return and are feeling unsure what to do next? Maybe you haven’t submitted the tax return, because you don’t think you need to be in self assessment? Whatever your situation, here we set out some easy steps to help you get back on track with your tax!

Step 1 – Should HMRC cancel the tax return?

Firstly, if you have still not submitted the tax return, check if one was actually required under HMRC’s criteria. It might be the case that HMRC sent you a notice to file, but you did not actually meet the self assessment criteria, or perhaps you registered for self assessment in error. We discuss who needs to complete a tax return in more detail on our website.

You can also use HMRC’s tool on GOV.UK to check. If, based on your circumstances during the 2023/24 tax year, HMRC’s tool says you did not need to complete a tax return, you can follow the steps to have the outstanding tax return cancelled. You will see a link on the result page that says ‘Tell HMRC you no longer need to send a tax return’.

If the tax return is cancelled, any late filing penalties for that tax return will also be cancelled automatically.

  You must make sure you let HMRC know in future years if your situation changes and re-register for self assessment if necessary.

Step 2 – If the tax return is due, then get it submitted

If you did meet the self assessment criteria for 2023/24, then you should go ahead and submit your tax return as soon as possible if you have not yet done so.

If you have received a late filing penalty, HMRC say you cannot appeal it until you have submitted the late tax return. If you need some help with the tax return then read our article Last minute tax return help, or the other guidance materials on our website. 

Step 3 – Get the tax paid or arrange a payment plan

Once you have submitted your tax return, it is important to also make sure you have paid your tax bill. Your 2023/24 tax bill was due on 31 January 2025, and you will be charged late payment interest until it is paid.

  If you have not paid your tax bill for 2023/24 by midnight on 2 March 2025, you will receive a 5% late payment penalty in addition to late payment interest. You might also face debt collection action from HMRC.

If you are having difficulty paying your tax, then you might be able to arrange a payment plan with HMRC, called a time to pay arrangement. Some people are able to set this up easily online using HMRC’s automated service, but you can also do this over the phone via HMRC’s payment helpline, details of which are on GOV.UK.

  If you set up a payment plan with HMRC before 3 March 2025, you should not be charged a late payment penalty. You will still be charged late payment interest.

You can read more about tax payment problems on our website.

Step 4 – Consider if you have grounds to appeal the penalty

Once you have submitted your tax return and you have paid the tax or sorted out a payment plan, then you can think about dealing with any late filing penalty you may have received.

If you filed your tax return late due to reasons outside of your control, you might be able to appeal the late filing penalty if HMRC agree you have a reasonable excuse. You can read more about this in our guidance.

Usually, you will have 30 days from the date on the penalty notice to appeal the penalty, so don’t delay. There is an online appeal tool on GOV.UK. This gives you the option to appeal online or to download a form and appeal by post. HMRC will then process the appeal and let you know their decision.

If you do not have grounds to appeal the penalty, then pay it as soon as possible in line with the payment instructions on the penalty notice.

What if you weren’t registered for self assessment?

For the purpose of late filing penalties, your tax return can only be ‘late’ if you were actually registered for self assessment in the first place. By this we mean that HMRC had sent you a notice to file a tax return.

Maybe you know you should have completed a tax return for 2023/24, but have not taken that first step of registering for self assessment with HMRC. If that sounds like you then the steps you need to take are slightly different to those set out above. We explain more about this in our guidance pages on Registering for self assessment and Failure to notify penalties, but in summary, the first step is to register for self assessment and then deal with the tax return as soon as possible once HMRC have issued the notice to file the return.

Let’s look at how this works using an example:

Thinking ahead to next year

Dealing with a late tax return and the added worry of receiving a penalty can be stressful, so it is worth thinking about what you can do to make sure the same problem doesn’t arise next year, if possible.

In particular, you might consider:

• Making a list of what information you will need to gather for next year’s tax return and ticking off the items when ready.
• If you prepare your tax return using HMRC’s online self assessment service, you can even go in and enter the information as it becomes available, as you have the option to save your progress and come back later.
• Setting some time aside, a long way in advance of the next self assessment deadline, to finalise and submit your tax return – put it on your calendar.
• Regularly setting aside some money for next year’s tax bill. You can even consider setting up a budget payment plan with HMRC. You can read more about budget payment plans in our guidance.

Getting further help and support

If you are on a low income and need help with dealing with an outstanding 2023/24 tax return or appealing your penalty, then the tax charities TaxAid or Tax Help for Older People might be able to help you.