Self Assessment: Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What are the important dates under Self Assessment?

The important dates for taxpayers are:

Dates for the Tax Return

6th April - The tax year
This starts on 6 April and ends on 5 April: so the tax year 2004-05 starts on 6 April 2004 and ends on 5 April 2005.

30 September - Deadline for sending in your tax return

• If you want us to work out your tax bill you should fill in your return and send it in by 30 September after the end of the tax year. We will still calculate your tax bill after this date but we cannot guarantee to tell you how much to pay by the end of January.
• You should also send in your tax return by 30 September if you want any tax you owe (less than £2000) included in the following year's tax code.

Remember: If you submit your Tax Return over the Internet all the Software and Online forms will calculate your tax liability for you.

31 January - Final deadline for sending in your tax return

If you decide to work out your tax bill yourself you must fill in your return and the calculation and send your Return in by 31 January after the end of the tax year.

You can send in the return earlier if you want. This does not mean that you will have to pay your tax any earlier.

Dates for payments

31 January and 31 July - Paying the tax due

Payments on account, usually equal to half the income tax due for the previous year will be payable on two dates normally

• 31 January in the tax year
• 31 July after the end of the tax year
  then a final balancing payment, if needed, on 31 January after the end of the tax year. This is the same time as the tax return deadline.

The payment dates do not change, even if you send your return in early.

For more information on dates and deadlines, plus a handy chart to print out, see 'Key Dates'.

Please note that in a few rare cases the payment dates may change, for example if your return was sent to you later than everyone else's.

Dates for employers and employees

Employers have to give their employees information they need to fill in their returns

• form P60 - showing pay and tax for the year - by 31 May
• the information from forms P11D and P9D showing expenses and benefits - by 6 July.

For more information on how Self Assessment affects employers, as well as some helpful hints, see the section Employers section on the Inland Revenue SA Index page.