[Ryan @ Transparent, Carlisle]

Okay. Dont shoot me down in flames for asking this, but ;-

Will the Inland Revenue notify me when i need to file a tax return? I first registered on august 6th/8th?? i have paid one lot of national insurance. and im guessing the next lot will be about due?

I thought i could do my own book,s but looks like i might need a bit of help & guidance so i will probably go to see an accountant this week.

[RO-Sheen]

I just got my letter from the IR this week reminding me that I have to pay my tax bill by the end of January.
Best you see your accountant asap and give him all of your receipts. He will calculate how much you owe and you MUST get your tax bill paid by the end of january or you will be fined.
TBH I think you are cutting it a bit fine as most accountants will be very busy now with all of their existing clients. Dont leave it so late next year!
I always try and get my receipts to my accountant by end of April so you will know as early as possible how much your January bill will be. This will give you plenty of time to save and put money aside.

Some people like to do it themselves as it saves on accountant bills but unless you know what you are doing you will better off hiring an accountant as they know all of the ins and outs and will save you more money.

[cleewindows]

you will not need to do a tax return till next year op!
don't worry they will want your money next year!

[Ryan @ Transparent, Carlisle]

you say you hand them in at april

January 2010 (NOW) you are paying the tax bill from apr 2008 - apr 2009?  is that right?

As i only started in august 2009 ...... am i still expected to pay a tax bill in January 2010. If so, from august 2009 to which month??? am i supposed to pay

Cheers, Ryan

[Ryan @ Transparent, Carlisle]

cheers cleewindows..... i posted my reply as you posted

[dai]

You don't have to file a tax return until October 2010.
If you want to do it yourself, or get an accountant to do it, the deadline for filing online is January 31st 2011

[RO-Sheen]

If you only started in August 09 you might be due a tax rebate, depending n your circumstances before you started. I don't know enough about it but maybe someone else knows? If not, an accountant would know. Still worth making an appointment asap for advise. first consultation should be free so you have nothing to lose

[daz1977]

phone ur local tax office and play dum as poop and ask for an appointment, as u dont understand the form and they will go throught it with you,  keep every receipt in a easy to find form,   i use to keep a spread sheet of what i spent on what, ie fuel,  uniforms, etc  go down with this and they will tell you what u need to put in what box,and as the end of it they will tell you what u owe,  if you can get the local tax office on your side, u can make your life a lot easier,  it is better to do this than have some little hitler turn up to ur house and screw you over


i know this because years agoi got chased by the tax man, never filed returns or anything, got fines etc,  went down one day, cried and give a sob story, the women in there filed in my tax return with the info on her screen and i got 600 quid back,  they 0ahve info on you,  if u r working they just want you to confirm what they got to see if it matches


if you are self employed and dont file a tax return, they will just pick someone else and you pay the same tax as them

[Niall McAllister]

Ryan, if you started august 09, you will have to think about filling in your tax return after april 2010 for the 09/10 tax year. if you are a sole trader it is not to difficult to do the self assessment, but contact the tax office and ask about their self assessment work shop, it lasts about 3 hr and covers all the basics.
until then keep every receipt that you get for business purchases, fuel, stationary, cleaning gear, car park receipts if you go to the shop for a stamp for a business letter, and anything else you can think of that you have spent on the business.

hmrc also do a small business start up workshop that you may still be able to attend.

Both workshops are free, and you can claim the travel expenses as it is for the business

[Ryan @ Transparent, Carlisle]

Thanks for the advice

I have an "0800" number, which costs me £15 a month. I know i can claim for this, but i dont get a receipt, although it is on my bank statements.

Should i photocopy my bank statements and use them as a receipt?

Thanks

[Sir Squeaky]

Some people like to do it themselves as it saves on accountant bills but unless you know what you are doing you will better off hiring an accountant as they know all of the ins and outs and will save you more money.

I don't agree.

I used an accountant for years and it cost me £200-odd each time.
Since I've done it myself it certainly hasn't cost me an extra £200!

To have £200 less to pay he'd have to find roughly an extra £1000 expenses! Yeah right!

[williamx]

Ryan

Legally you need to let the taxman know when you first start up in business, I think this is within 6 weeks.

You then need to file a tax return every april.

You then have until the end of January to pay any taxes due.

The following July you will need to pay 50% of your last tax bill, as an advance payment for the following tax years liability.

I would advise that you first use the "George window cleaning programme" that way you can kept a very good record of you income and expenses.

Secondly I would invest in a very good accountant, they will save you many ££££ if they are good at their job.

Thirdly, I would join the Federation of Small Businesses, they will protect and advise you in many tax and other legal matters that could cost you thousands in the future.

[daz1977]

Thanks for the advice

I have an "0800" number, which costs me £15 a month. I know i can claim for this, but i dont get a receipt, although it is on my bank statements.

Should i photocopy my bank statements and use them as a receipt?

Thanks

that should be fine,  the chances of them asking to see them are slim,  u just ahve to keep receipts just in case,  i have a seperate bank account for my business and i pay everything out of this,  i even keep a record of how many litres of water i use a day and charge my self for it when the bill arives,  so the company is paying for the water it uses

[ccmids]

my accountant charges me £800 + a year , is that good

[Rcs]

£250 -- to £300 i pay a year for a limited company
he does the return
deals with companies house
does my tax credits
does  all my expenses
and sorts out all the inland revenues attemps to rip me off

anyone want his number let us know

dont have to be local all i do is post everything and he sorts it out

remember you need someone on your side the government are out to get you

[Niall McAllister]

my accountant charges me £800 + a year , is that good

that's good.



















for his cottage in the south of france

[ccmids]

£250 -- to £300 i pay a year for a limited company
he does the return
deals with companies house
does my tax credits
does  all my expenses
and sorts out all the inland revenues attemps to rip me off

anyone want his number let us know

dont have to be local all i do is post everything and he sorts it out

remember you need someone on your side the government are out to get you

sure he's not just a book keeper £300 is cheap

[williamx]

Mine only charges £120

[Sir Squeaky]

my accountant charges me £800 + a year , is that good

that's good.



















for his cottage in the south of france

£800! So he'd have to find you £3200 extra expenses to knock £800 off your tax bill! 

[martinsadie]

just paid my tax online and wrote out check for the accountant £175