Late filing of Self Assessment tax returns

Taxpayers that have not yet filed their 2015-16 Self Assessment returns will have already been charged an automatic £100 penalty for late submission. The penalty applied from 1 February 2017, even if no tax was due or the tax due was paid on time. However, taxpayers who were meant to file online by 31 January 2017, and have still not filed their 2015-16 return, are reminded that they will face far greater penalties. A daily penalty of £10 per day, up to a maximum of £900 (90 days) is being charged from 1 May 2017.  Further penalties then apply if the return is still outstanding for more than 6 months after the 31 January 2017 filing deadline. From 1 August 2017, taxpayers will be charged the greater of £300 or 5% of the tax due. If the return is outstanding one year after the filing deadline, further penalties will be charged from 1 February 2018.HMRC has been taking a more pragmatic approach to penalties in respect of taxpayers that file a late return. However, this only applies to those that have a reasonable excuse for filing a Self Assessment return late and file as soon as practically possible.