I've been an idiot and not paid my tax - help!

downshifter98

Hi

Just put it down to experience and move on - its pretty unlikely they will track you down and even if they do they are unlikely to charge much more than if you voluntarily tried to declare your income - you would NOT be facing any kind of jail term, either way around. Unless....of course.....if the 'cash in hand' added up to millions.......(and, even then, only perhaps).

Downshifter

ekkygirl

No room in prison so you wont be going there. Count up how much you have had by cheque claim for everything you can possibly think of phone/fuel/clothing/entertaining customers/buying xmas bottle for customers/ get an accountant if necessary put tax return in, even if you guess for now and then get the books done you should be ok

amf

chuckles1066 wrote: »

Well I thought the bit where he said "I left the army (where obviously the pay office sorted all your tax out) a year and a half ago and since then have been working cash in hand. I know that I have been foolish"

There is no evidence of evasion there....many workers are paid in cash.No offence has been committed by receiving payment via cash (or by being foolish). Refer to Taxes Management Act 1970 for info on failures giving liability to penalties. No common law crime has been committed as has been pointed out by sensible contributors.

chuckles1066 wrote: »

I hope for the OP's sake you're right................but you're not, HMRC don't like being made monkeys of.

This makes as much sense as your original post. Being a professional, I know exactly how HMRC operate. If you think HMRC has the manpower to bring all defaulters to court you clearly know nothing about these matters.

chuckles1066

amf wrote: »

If you think HMRC has the manpower to bring all defaulters to court you clearly know nothing about these matters.

I'm not sure how you managed to make such a deduction from what I posted?

Only Guardian readers are normally capable of such leaps in logic.

You aren't one, are you?

si_the_clown

Thank you for your replies,

I will take Pams advice and declare myself self employed and put the tax return in. It will be easy enought to run through my bank statements to see how much my income was and my travel expenses were very small.

I think chuckles can carry on chuckling to himself, but thanks everybody else for sensible advice

System

si there are 2 ways to claim for travel costs the most widely used is the one where you can claim 40 pence per mile up to business 10,000 miles and 25 pence per mile above 10,000.

chuckles1066

si_the_clown wrote: »

I think chuckles can carry on chuckling to himself, but thanks everybody else for sensible advice

Hilarious how someone who openly admits to tax and NI evasion for 18 months has managed to somehow assume the moral high ground

But then, this is NuLiebour's Britain so nothing much surprises me anymore....

kylieM_2

If I were you, and this is just my opinon. I would start afresh. I talk to a few people who work for the HR and they told me that they are too busy to chase individuals unless they are reported, its the big fish they are after, but I wouldn't carry on the way you are going.

Murdina

chuckles1066 the issue is that there is no criminal offence of tax evasion as such. The Taxes Management Act is largely geared to civil recovery of undeclared tax, with very heavy financial penalties if you do underdeclare tax. To be sent to prison, you need to be prosecuted for a criminal, not a civil, offence. A typical way HMRC will "get" you for such an offence is by charging you with fraud or false accounting. For example, if you are subject of an HMRC enquiry, then at the end you will sign a document to state that you have disclosed all of your assets and income. If HMRC later find out you were lying, they have a clear cut case of fraud to prosecute you.

jimmo

One point doesn’t seem to have been mentioned. You definitely will be charged the £100.00 for failure to register but in order to avoid any further tax penalties you not only have to make a return but you also have to pay the tax due by 31/1/08.
Its difficult to imagine you actually getting a UTR (tax reference) by then. In my day they would accept payments on account under your National Insurance Number but they may no longer do that.
It might be advisable to buy some tax deposits see http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/howtopay/cert_tax_deposit.htm#j
As long as you buy them before 31/1/08 that will be counted as paying before 31/1/08.
Oh! Are you aware/ have you remembered that your first instalment for 2007/08 is also due by 31/1/08? That is half the final liability for 2006/07.
Sorry.