Tax advice

[JackSomething]

Hi all, having previously drawn on the JA support network for advice on IFA's, I'm looking for any recommendations for an accountant please? I've had the request from HMRC to do a self assessment tax return and having never done one before, I'm looking to get expert advice on this first one rather than do it myself.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Cooperman]

What is making you think that you need an accountant, your tax affairs (which are none of my business) or the familiarity with the system? The system is quite straightforward for those under PAYE.

 

[monmouth]

Yes, don't pay, unless you do have complicated affairs. Your employer (s) will give you a P60 (s) which gives you all you need for the 'employment' section. Then any interest earned will be notified to you, ditto dividends on an annual statement. This can take a couple of months to come through sometimes, but you have until next January to file online.

If you don't have an online account, set one up. Go to HMRC site and do it through Government Gateway. You may have to prove your identity by uploading passport or DL photos if I remember right. Then the form is there under self assessment, and it will actually also have details of your employment as that's all electronically submitted now each month. If you can't do it after that for any reason, then fair enough, but at least you'll know what you don't know, and I'm sure some of us (ie Lisa) can answer any questions!.

 

[JackSomething]

Thanks for the advice both. I've been asked to submit for 24/25 within 3 months of receiving the letter. I'm in the process of gathering the end of year interest statements from the various accounts I had open at the time. Perhaps I'll have a crack at submitting it all myself before paying an expert.

 

[Pentyrchjack]

I can't offer advice but happy to share my experience of doing many years Self Assessments. Please inbox me.

 

[J_B]

Write back to them and say that you’re terminating your membership forthwith in protest at their ever increasing subscription fees.

 

[monmouth]

Thanks for the advice both. I've been asked to submit for 24/25 within 3 months of receiving the letter. I'm in the process of gathering the end of year interest statements from the various accounts I had open at the time. Perhaps I'll have a crack at submitting it all myself before paying an expert.

24/25? I won't ask!

 

[Cooperman]

Thanks for the advice both. I've been asked to submit for 24/25 within 3 months of receiving the letter. I'm in the process of gathering the end of year interest statements from the various accounts I had open at the time. Perhaps I'll have a crack at submitting it all myself before paying an expert.

No worries. Drop me a PM if you have a question or query. If the tax affairs are straightforward and if you have the data to hand, it can be a fifteen min job.

 

[Ronald Parp]

All the advice is DIY. I’d say pay 150 quid odd and get an accountant to do it. It will save the ballache and potentially the stress as it sounds like you’ve crossed thresholds without declaring so you’ll probably have money to pay back, probably from child benefit plus fines and interest.

 

[JackSomething]

Without going into details, I have a lot more money in savings than I used to and stupidly followed some advice that it would all be sorted by HMRC because the banks send all the info to them. I have been paying a lot more monthly to them for quite a long time now out of my pay because they adjusted my tax code. Based on my calculations, they're actually going to owe me a refund as they're taking more than they should have.

I have a question I'm happy to put forward here as I'm not giving any personal details. Many years back when my now wife and I started living together, she opened up a new account with her bank so that we could both pay into it and use it as a household bills account. She put it in both her names, which had the effect of putting my name on all her accounts, including a savings account. It didn't matter then because I was nowhere near passing the threshold. Now I have, do people think I'm going to have to include those details in my return, even though the interest earned from that account is hers, I've never seen a penny of it?

 

[Cooperman]

Without going into details, I have a lot more money in savings than I used to and stupidly followed some advice that it would all be sorted by HMRC because the banks send all the info to them. I have been paying a lot more monthly to them for quite a long time now out of my pay because they adjusted my tax code. Based on my calculations, they're actually going to owe me a refund as they're taking more than they should have.

I have a question I'm happy to put forward here as I'm not giving any personal details. Many years back when my now wife and I started living together, she opened up a new account with her bank so that we could both pay into it and use it as a household bills account. She put it in both her names, which had the effect of putting my name on all her accounts, including a savings account. It didn't matter then because I was nowhere near passing the threshold. Now I have, do people think I'm going to have to include those details in my return, even though the interest earned from that account is hers, I've never seen a penny of it?

The advice you followed wasn’t stupidly followed, that’s generally how things work.

If these accounts are in both names then HMRC generally split the interest equally, you’ve probably already paid tax on it through PAYE recovery. Your tax return will be for the last FY, not prior years.

 

[legoman]

A couple of years back I sat with No1 son as he had to do SA return. I'd done it years before and found it then to be a pain in the rectum, but doing it with the lad I realised the system had been made much easier and clearer, and we did it in about 30 mins.

In my opinion, if you don't have complexities like large dividend income, overseas property, rental income etc etc it's pretty easy. There's several discrete sections that you can just ignore if they don't apply.

I don't know if you have ever set up an income tax account online, but I find that very useful now. I have income from the state pension, a private pension and also from occasional employment as an exam invigilator. You can go into your account and see what incomes HMRC have assigned you from their records and if you think they are incorrect you can update them.

You could alternatively try a ruse I read about once that Patrick Moore used to use. As the tax return deadline approached, he would send HMRC a letter enclosing a cheque in which he told them was for his tax under payment for the previous tax year. He maintained that threw HMRC into such confusions it bought him several extra months to submit his return whilst HMRC tried to work out what under payment he was on about!