Not sure what to pay and time is running out.?

danrogers

hi, im a stupid newbie to paying tax/ filling tax returns etc. ive only been self employed the last 2 years and only really found out about what i have to do recently. my problem is that i did some work for cash in 2007/08 and also this year and i want to declare it. however i have not made any records of what i have earnt. will i get in trouble if i just take a guess at what i made? i dont intend on lying but i obviously dont want to say i made more than i did either? any ideas on my best approach to this? thanks

Rolo_Tomasi

Have you registered as self employed yet? If not you need to do this asap and tell the Revenue what date you started. This will probably lead to a 2007-08 Tax Return being sent to you (along with a late registration penalty). You need to complete this Return as accurately as possible - surely you have bank statements and some receipts - and then make a note in the other information section that you have used estimates and why.

This Return may just be accepted or the Revenue may enquire into it at which point you will have to justify the figures you have used. Remember if this happens it is your responsibility to prove the accuracy of the figures, not the Revenues to prove they are incorrect.

danrogers

yeah im already registered as self employed. the problem is ive done a mix of self employed work for cash, and work for employers. also as i had a lot of money problems that year i often had money lent and sometimes given to me from parents to help me with bills/rent etc . as i didnt really have much of a clue about paying tax at the time i didnt keep a lot of receipts etc. i think il have to request all of my bank statements and try and figure out which money was lent/given and which money i obtained from work

danrogers

also do i stil get the late fee if i do my tax return online? i thought the deadlines for on paper and online were different?

Mikeyorks

danrogers wrote: »

also do i stil get the late fee ..

The reference to the penalty was in the belief you hadn't yet registered as self-employed .... as your original post suggested you may not have done so.

If you're registered to file your SA online - you have until 31st Jan to do so - but obviously don't leave it that late as the system starts to buckle under the pressure after late Jan. You'll feel relieved if you get it done early!

danrogers

Also, what is the likelyhood that HMRC will check what has gone into my bank account, as like i said some of the money is just money that has been lent to me or given to me by relatives. I dont want them to think that i have been earning more than i have

orangeslimes

danrogers wrote: »

Also, what is the likelyhood that HMRC will check what has gone into my bank account, as like i said some of the money is just money that has been lent to me or given to me by relatives. I dont want them to think that i have been earning more than i have

It's most likely they won't - but it is probably a good idea if you make a reasonable attempt at going through your bank statements and identifying what is what as you don't really know what you have earnt anyway. Also remember to include business expenses for your self employment (cost of telephone calls, stock, stationery etc)

John_Pierpoint

If you are going to get it done on-line, you need to get stuck in now. You need to get access and then teach yourself how it works.

If you turnover is low enough, there is not a lot to do, but don't end up in the last 10 days of January discovering that one of your employers has given you an invalid P60 (like I did one year).

downshifter

Also, if I remember rightly, you have to apply for and wait for a password to arrive in the post so there could be a delay. For some reason HMRC release statistics of how many people actually do their tax return on Xmas day, you might want to be one of those for a bit of fun, probably the best day for the system to be not overloaded, it really can be a problem to do it online during the last couple of weeks of January.

DS