Just when you thought you understood Self Assessment Tax bills, HMRC introduced Payment on Account. Which is a mechanism where HMRC requests part of your tax bill upfront based on a guesstimate amount of tax for next year alongside any tax due for the last tax year.
Unfortunately it catches many new (and already existing and established) business owners out, and can affect your cashflow, leading to self employed individuals paying more than they need to in interest and late payment penalties because they don’t have enough money set aside to pay their tax bill.
In this blog, we break down the meaning of a ‘payment on account’ tax bill, explaining exactly what it is and how it works, whether or not you are required to pay on account, and when you need to make your tax payments.
So lets get into it….
What are tax payments on account?
Payments on account are advance payments you make twice a year towards your Self Assessment tax bill.
HMRC estimate how much tax you owe for the upcoming year based on your previous year’s tax bill. You pay this estimate over in two instalment dates 31st July and 31st January.
HMRC designed this process to help taxpayers stay on top of their payments as well as avoid paying tax in arrears, thrusting the tax collecting system into proactive collections as opposed to the historical arrears collection.
Payment on account can be calculated by halving your previous year’s tax bill. Your actual tax bill won’t necessarily match the estimate, as business income generally fluctuates from year to year therefore its just a guestimate that is corrected and reconciled when you file your next tax bill.
So If your payments on account doesn’t cover your total tax bill for the year, you must make an additional ‘balancing payment’. The reverse is also true, in the sense that if your earnings go down, you may be due a refund back.
The two current deadlines for paying your Self Assessment tax bill are:
- Midnight on 31 January (the same date your Self Assessment tax return is due) for any tax you owe for the previous tax year (a balancing payment) and your first payment on account for the upcoming tax year.
- Midnight 31 July for your second payment on account for the upcoming tax year.
As a Self Assessment taxpayer, you’re required to make payments on account to HMRC unless you fall under one of the following two categories:
- Your last Self Assessment tax bill was less than £1,000.
- 80% or more of your tax was deducted at source through PAYE.
An example of how payment on account works
To give you an illustrative payment on account example, let’s say you became self-employed in May 2020 and completed your first Self Assessment return for the 2020/21 tax year.
Once you completed your return, HMRC calculated you owed £500 tax for the year, due by 31 January 2022. Your tax bill was under the £1,000 threshold, so you weren’t required to make payments on account for the following tax year.
During the following tax year (2021/22), you recorded higher profits and your bill for the 2021/22 tax year came to £2,000.
Because this is above the threshold, the payment on account process was triggered for the 2022/23 tax year.
Therefore, in addition to the £2,000 tax payment owed for the 2021/22 tax year, your tax bill also included your first payment on account for the 2022/23 tax year of £1,000 (half your 2021/22 tax bill).
So you paid a total of £3,000 on 31 January 2023.
Your second payment on account of £1,000 for the 2022/23 tax year was made on 31 July 2023.
Now, in total, you have paid £2,000 towards your 2022/23 tax bill.
When you submit your Self Assessment tax return for the 2022/23 year, and your tax bill comes to £1,800, for example, you’ll be owed a refund of £200 (the difference between the £2,000 you have paid on account and your actual tax bill).
In this case, your next payment on account for the following tax year, due 31 January 2024, would be £900 (half of your 2022/23 tax bill).
How and when to make tax payments on account
There are a few ways you can pay, just make sure you allow enough time for the payment to be processed before the deadline.
For same or next day payment choose either online banking, CHAPS, pay online with a personal debit card or corporate credit card (personal credit cards are not taken), or pay at your bank (you’ll need a paying-in slip from HMRC to do this).
Allow three working days if you choose to pay by BACS and we recommend 5-10 days for any cheques sent through the post.
A convenient way to ensure you don’t miss your payment on account is to set up a direct debit with HMRC. You can action this through your government gateway. It will tell you in advance how much it will take and when.
If you prefer to make regular monthly or weekly payments towards your next tax bill, you can set up a budget payment plan with HMRC. How much you want to pay and how often is up to you. However please bear in mind if you miss a payment deadline, you’ll be charged interest, and you may also have to pay a late payment penalty.
How can you reduce payments on account
All business income can fluctuate from year to year.
If you know your tax bill is going to be lower than the previous year, say for example you have fewer clients or your tax relief has gone up, you can avoid overpaying tax by asking HMRC to reduce your payments on account.
You can choose to do this online or by post.
To do this online, sign into your government gateway account. Select the option to view your latest Self Assessment return, and then select ‘reduce payments on account’.
To apply by post, fill out the SA303 form on screen, print it, and send to the tax office.
Do think carefully before you reduce your payment on account because if it turns out you’ve underpaid, you’ll have to pay interest on the outstanding amount, which can increase your tax bill significantly.
How does a payment on account refund work?
If you have paid too much tax, you’re entitled to claim a payment on account refund, this can only be actioned once you’ve submitted your next tax return. The easiest way to get this refund is to apply for a bank transfer, again this can be done via your government gateway account. Alternatively, you can put it towards your next payment on account tax bill.
If you are still unsure:
Please contact us and we can help you, as we are accountants that provides services to small businesses, self employed individual tax is our focus.
Please contact us on 0800 061461 or contact us via our website: www.dlraccounting.com
Give us a call to discuss further and see how we can help you cut your tax bill!