The HM Revenue and Customs-HMRC are the UK’s tax, payment, and customs authority. The purpose of HMRC is to collect the public’s tax. This tax is used to help families and individuals in the UK with financial support. These families and individuals need financial help because of one reason or another.
The HMRC is responsible for all taxes in the UK. These taxes can include
- Income tax: it is the tax got directly from a business, employment, rent, interests, pensions, and dividends
- Corporation tax
- Inheritance tax
- Environmental tax
- Value Added Tax (VAT)
- Customs duty: it is the tax imposed on goods when they cross the country’s border
- Tax benefit
- National insurance
- Child benefit
The HMRC like any other organization has its objectives. The objectives of HMRC are:
- To make it easy to get tax. It will eventually make it hard for tax evaders to break and bend the rules put in place regarding taxes.
- Another objective of HMRC is to collect the correct tax in the country. Once the taxes are collected, the HMRC pays out the needed financial support to families in the UK that are struggling financially.
- It is the HMRC’s objective to treat the taxpayers fairly and protect the taxpayers and society from any harm. It includes protecting them from fraudsters who try to take advantage of the taxpayers.
- The HMRC supports the government’s economic aims. It does this by setting up a resilient tax administration system. It ensures that the tax paid by the taxpayers is well utilized and used by the government to support the economy and people.
In self-assessment, a taxpayer advises the HMRC of the income he might have gotten during the year, the gains the taxpayer got, and the relevant expenses for the year.
The UK government set policies and rules regarding the filing of self-assessment tax returns. All self-employed workers are expected to file self-assessment tax returns. High earners are expected by the UK government through HMRC to file self-assessment returns. As a UK citizen, you should also apply the self-assessment tax if:
- As a taxpayer, you need to pay capital gains
- You receive an income from a trust.
- You were self-employed and had an income of above 1000 Euros
- If you are self-employed and received the COVID-19 support payment from the government.
- You filed the self-assessment tax return the previous year.
- The state pension you got was more than your allowance. The state pension should also have been your only source of income that year.
It is the taxpayer’s responsibility to inform HMRC that they will pay the self-assessment tax return. If this is not done and a taxpayer does not pay the taxes, he will end up getting fined by the HMRC.
The deadline for filing the annual tax returns was October 31. The deadline for filing online returns is January 2023. Self-assessment taxpayers need to be on the lookout because they are the targets of fraudsters.
The fraudsters are not sleeping on their job. They are taking advantage of self-assessment taxpayers who are not on the lookout. They send emails, and text messages and call unsuspecting self-assessment taxpayers claiming to be HMRC. If a taxpayer has never filed the self-assessment, the taxpayer is more vulnerable to fraudsters. Fraudsters send vulnerable taxpayers links. When an unsuspecting taxpayer opens the ink, it exposes his essential financial information. The criminals take advantage of the information and steal money from the taxpayer.
One of the objectives of the HMRC is to protect taxpayers from harm. It includes protecting taxpayers from fraudsters and criminals. It has a dedicated team that deals with phones and cyber crimes. The HMRC tries to prevent taxpayers from getting misleading information from fraudsters and criminals. It has been successful and the HMRC has prevented millions of malicious emails from reaching taxpayers.
The HMRC is keen to educate the taxpayers and urges them to be on the lookout for any websites, emails, and links that might look suspicious. Taxpayers are urged to double-check any website they want to visit and confirm it is the right HMRC website.
If you are suspecting someone is trying to fraud you, you need to report the matter urgently. You can report the suspected fraud by forwarding the suspect text to 60599. If a fraudster is trying to fraud you via email, you should report it to [email protected]. It will also apply to any fraudulent phone calls you might get. There is an online form on GOV.UK that you can also use to report such fraudsters.
For a taxpayer to pay for the self-assessment tax return, he needs to sign up for the HMRC government Gateway. Once you have signed in, you should register for self-assessment through your business tax account. The HMRC will send you a letter with your Unique Taxpayer Reference number, which you will use to file your returns.
Remember, failing to file your returns on time might lead to penalties or higher interest charges. If you file your self-assessment tax return late, you will attract a penalty.
Taxpayers need to be on the lookout for their posts and emails. It will help a taxpayer to get any notification or request he might have got from HMRC to file returns. If unsure of anything, a taxpayer is advised to contact the HMRC as soon as possible.