First Self Assessment Tax Return
Introduction to UK Self Assessment
Common reasons to submit a self assessment tax return:
you have untaxed earnings outside of payroll like dividends, rental income, crypto income or capital gains
you are self employed (but you do not have a limited company)
you earn more than £100,000 as an employee
It's down to you to register for self assessment. You can't rely on HMRC, your accountant, or the bloke down the pub to tell you to do so.
You may be fined if you fail to register on time.
When to register for self assessment
The UK tax year runs from 6th April to 5th April.
You can only register for self assessment after the end of the tax year and before 5th October.
Example: Let's say you generate £4,000 selling pizza in October 2023. You must register for self assessment between 6th April 2023 and 5th October 2024.
Before preparing your first tax return you need to register for self assessment. You'll receive a Unique Tax Reference after registration.
It takes 10-30 days to receive your UTR in the post, so don't register too late.
If you are late - then register as soon as possible. You may still be fined, but you may also be able to appeal the penalty. HMRC tend to be lenient if you show a willingness to put things right.
How to register if you are a company director or earn more than £100k
Skip to the next section if you are self employed
Company directors only need to register for self assessment if they also have untaxed earnings, such as dividends.
You can also follow these steps if you earn more than £100k as an employee.
Follow the link below to register for self assessment:
During registration you will:
Set up an individual government gateway account
Pass security and ID checks
What happens after registration:
You'll receive a UTR in the post in 2-4 weeks
Forward your UTR to us and we'll let you know what's next
Then check out our checklist for the complete list of what we need from you to prepare your tax return.
How to register for self assessment if you are self employed
See the above section if you are a company director or earn over £100k per year
If you run a business but you do not have a limited company then you are self-employed. Sole trader is another term for the same situation.
You only need to register for self assessment if you generate more than £1,000 in revenue.
To register, follow the steps under "If you have not filed a tax return before".
During registration you will:
Create or login to a business tax account
Pass security and ID checks
Once you have access to your business tax account, you'll need to select 'add Self Assessment' from the dashboard.
What happens next:
You'll receive a UTR in the post in 2-4 weeks
Forward your UTR to us and we'll let you know what's next
Then check out our checklist for the complete list of what we need from you to prepare your tax return.
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