20.01.2015

Tax Return Late Filing

Tax return late filing is not uncommon, the key is just how you deal with it when it happens!

We thought we’d take a quick break from what is a hectic month in the tax accounting world and share a light hearted tale of bad excuses.  HMRC have recently published a list of what they think are the worst excuses given by tax payers for late filing of their returns, and here’s a few of them:

• My pet dog ate my tax return…and all the reminders.
• I was up a mountain in Wales, and couldn’t find a postbox or get an internet signal.
• I fell in with the wrong crowd.
• I’ve been travelling the world, trying to escape from a foreign intelligence agency.
• Barack Obama is in charge of my finances.
• I’ve been busy looking after a flock of escaped parrots and some fox cubs.
• A work colleague borrowed my tax return, to photocopy it, and didn’t give it back.
• I live in a camper van in a supermarket car park.

There’s certainly some far fetched imaginative excuse makers out there!  Needless to say, all of these were rejected on appeal as reasonable excuses.

HMRC have also recently released statistics on those individuals “most likely” to file their returns late.  Young men working in the communications industry are the most likely to miss the looming tax return deadline while those in agriculture, fishing and forestry were the most efficient last year.

Whatever your age, sex or business there’s not much time left to get your return filed if you haven’t got it in already.  If you need assistance get in touch and we’ll endeavour to help you meet that deadline.  And if you’ve got a genuine reason for missing then don’t be put off by the unsuccessful “reasons” above!

Tax return late filing can be expensive.  Don’t get caught out.

CNM Advisory