First Time Self Assessment Advice

hivoodoodoll

I’m doing my self-assessment form for the first time because I have not been working but selling things via Etsy and a local shop and have made over £1000. I have itemised everything in a spreadsheet, and my profit has been about £1500, but my outgoings have been more like £2500 (not unusual for the first year of a small business).

I have read through the self-assessment form, but I’m slightly confused about where I state the above amounts. I am assuming that I would put the £1500 under the net business profits, but when I went to put the £2500 under the loss for this year. I got a message saying my loss my losses couldn’t outnumber the profit.

Any advice would be gratefully received. Understandably, I don’t really want to have to get an accountant involved as I’m already running at a loss.

On-the-coast

but you have zero net profits.... i.e. you haven't made a net profit of £1500
i supose you could just list a trading loss of £1000... but you're probably overcomplicating things.  Do you even need to do a self assessment?

hivoodoodoll

On-the-coast said:

but you have zero net profits.... i.e. you haven't made a net profit of £1500
i supose you could just list a trading loss of £1000... but you're probably overcomplicating things.  Do you even need to do a self assessment?

That’s what I originally thought, but then I read somewhere that if you actually make something and sell it the money you get from that is your profit and that’s what you have to do submit to HMRC. That’s why I was wondering how I factor in my outgoings. 

DE_612183

Profit is what you take when all your expenses have been taken off (net).

Turnover is the amount you have sold all the stuff for.

martindow

I think there may be some confusion in terminology, OP.

Can you tell us:

1  your turnover (ie the total money you have received from your sales over the year)

2  your total costs over the year (purchase of goods or materials and any other expenses involved in trading)

I think that will make the position clearer and it easier to advise you regarding the return.  Well done for getting on with it in good time - it's much less stressful than trying to sort things out in the last few days of January!