File your late tax return now: Every day’s delay will cost you £10 from 1 May

From Sunday (1 May) HMRC will start charging taxpayers who haven’t yet filed their 2014/15 return daily penalties of £10.

Patricia Mock, tax director at Deloitte, comments:

“If you needed to file a 2014/15 return and have not done so, you should do this without further delay. You will already be liable for a penalty of £100. This penalty is imposed by HMRC for all late returns, even if the tax is paid on time or if a tax repayment is due. Some 870,000 people did not file their returns by the 31 January deadline and have incurred the £100 penalty already.

“Once a return is three months late daily penalties can be imposed: from 1 May every day’s delay will cost you £10, so now is the time to get up to date. The £10 penalty can be charged for 90 days adding up to £900.

“Once the return is 6 months late a further penalty is levied at the greater of 5% of the tax due and £300. Another penalty of the same amount is imposed when the return is 12 months late.

“All these penalties can only be reduced if you have a reasonable excuse for the failure to file. Penalties are imposed even if no tax is outstanding and could exceed £1,600 when the return is a year late.”

“There are separate and additional penalties where tax is paid late.”

End

Notes to editors

About Deloitte
In this press release references to Deloitte are references to Deloitte LLP, which is among the country's leading professional services firms.

Deloitte LLP is the United Kingdom member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (“DTTL”), a UK private company limited by guarantee, whose member firms are legally separate and independent entities. Please see www.deloitte.co.uk/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTTL and its member firms.

The information contained in this press release is correct at the time of going to press.

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