Every year thousands of tax payers miss the deadline of 31st January, here are some excuses that HRMC accepted!

1. a failure in the HMRC computer system (HMRC)
2. your computer breaks down just before or during the preparation of your online return (HMRC)
3. a serious illness, disability or serious mental health condition has made you incapable of filing your tax return (HMRC)
4. you registered for HMRC Online Services but didn’t get your Activation Code in time (HMRC)
5. it was lost in the post HMD Response International v’s HMRC 2011 The accountant produced a contemporaneous note in his office diary for 16 May showing that he had filed the return.
6. “Impecuniosity”Maxine Barron v’s HMRC
7. Cashflow difficulties caused by a change in CIS Status Kincaid v’s HMRC 2011

Around one in nine (11%) of the 560,000 people in Inner London who had to send in a tax return last year didn’t do so by the relevant deadline – 31 October for paper returns and 31 January for online submissions.

The one million taxpayers in Outer London were more punctual, with one in 11 (9%) failing to meet the deadline, but they were still the second worst offenders. The tardiest taxpayers outside of London were in the North West of England, with 8% of their 890,000 returns failing to meet the deadline.

Taxpayers in the rest of the English regions fared better. The most punctual were in the South West, with only 6% of their one million tax returns arriving late. The other English regions, as well as Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, all registered 7% of late tax returns, which was the UK national average.

Don’t be late, get it done!!!

 

steve@bicknells.net