Tax return (and poss refund) help please

changeforbetter

Hi

First posting on this section of the forum, most grateful for any advice.

Last year I had PAYE employed income totalling 10,500 (just over tax threshold) but was taxed as normal on some of it, so I overpaid the tax I believe.

I am also partly self-employed from last year and earned about 2,300 in that way.

I asked for a refund online a few months ago on the PAYE part, and it even asked if I also had a tax return, said yes. It told me online to continue and submit my claim for PAYE refund...fine I thought.

Nothing happened for quite some time so, rang them yesterday. They now said, you have to just send in the tax return (I thought that was for my self employed bit!) then might get a refund!

Can I ask, is this normal, and do you normally declare all the PAYE parts (income/tax) on the tax return and get any refund that way?

Many thanks for any advice.

densol_2

Yes you do. The on line form is tailored by you to complete the relevant bits but unfortunately many people forget to include earned income and others things and just complete the self employed. Also other relevant sections like building society interest, dividends etc need to go in. you need to go back and amend the tax return adding in every relevant section and complete them and re submit so the computer can work out the correct tax owed / overpaid etc

polymaff

Do some sums. It is unlikely that your employer is using an emergency tax number for you, so you are probably not due any PAYE back. It is more likely that you nett owe HMRC tax due to your self-employment - but do some sums.

Follow Densol's advice. These things are sorted out when you make a self-assessment return to HMRC, selecting the relevant add-on pages so that you declare your entire income for the relevant tax year.

[Deleted User]

Good advice above. The tax return is basically a means of you recording ALL of your earnings for the tax year in question, wherever and how ever you've earned it (employment, self employment, bank interest etc), working out how much tax you should pay on said TOTAL earnings and then deducting any tax that you have already paid (via PAYE/CIS etc). The remaining tax is then payable.

changeforbetter

Thanks for above replies - ok, seems it is normal to include earned income in the return in this case - hope it will be clear where I put it (not done one before)?

I still think I may be due some back, but prob a bit less than I'd thought before - some of my income was taxed at full rate, so it was fair bit over on the PAYE tax, and my self employed as you can see is not that much.

What I really don't get though is why the online system for claiming back on PAYE didn't let me know this and made me wait several weeks/months before I rang to find out! I'd already put in that I had a return and the system just said carry on and it would be done...

Either way, thanks for the advice above.