A tax return needs to be submitted each year if you are an individual or partnership and needs to be submitted by 31 October if you choose to submit a paper return and 31 January if you are filing online – the information included on the return will be for the year to the previous 5 April and within 12 months of the financial year end for Companies with the information being in respect of the company’s financial year rather than for any specific tax year.

An automatic £100 penalty will be raised for any return that is not filed in time for the filing deadline.  However if the outstanding tax transpires to be less then than this then the penalty will be reduced to the same amount.  A second £100 penalty is raised for any returns still outstanding 6 months after the due date.  In addition daily penalties of up to £60 per day may be charged where deemed appropriate.

For partnership returns the £100 penalties are per partner and cannot be reduced.  There are however no tax geared penalties for partnerships.

You should notify Revenue and Customs within 3 months of commencing self-employment to avoid a possible £100 penalty.

In this situation what will have happened is that your profits or other untaxed income are higher than they were in the previous year hence your tax liability is higher.  As the two instalments of tax you make as payments on account are always based on your previous year’s tax liability, they will not have been large enough to settle your full liability in the previous January and July and therefore you need to pay the balance in the next January at the same time as making your first instalment for the following tax year.  Bear in mind that as the first instalment (and subsequently the second) for the new year is based on the now higher level of profits earned, it will be higher as a result than last year as well.  The situation works in reverse where profits are falling and you will find that your payments on account more than meet your liability leading to a repayment or a reduction in the next year’s instalment required.

Yes but only staff entertaining can be used to reduce taxable income and there are limits on the amount.  Entertaining of customers, suppliers or other contacts is not allowable for income tax and also VAT on this type of expense should not be recovered by the business.

Yes.
We have systems in place which enable us to process Tax Returns in a cost effective way.
The agreed fee not only includes the preparation of the Return but also written reminders of when liabilities are due for payment.