Self employed taxes in the UK – what records do you need to keep?

Let’s have a little chat about self employed taxes and record keeping in the UK. As a self employed person, you must keep records to back up the information you put on your self assessment tax returns. You can keep paper records, electronic records (e.g. in a spreadsheet) or you can use software. So what sort of information do you need to keep track of?

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – a disaster for small business?

So you know how you currently do your taxes once a year and you have 10 months to fill in your tax return? Well I’ve got bad news for you. You’ll soon need to send up to 5 tax returns per year, you’ll need to update HMRC every 3 months and you’ll be forced to buy special software that lets you do this. Welcome to the joys of Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA)

Budget 2020 – What does it mean for the self employed?

The 2020 budget has been long awaited. Delayed due to Brexit shenanigans, scuppered by a general election, complicated by a change of chancellor and then almost entirely wiped out by a global pandemic, this has been a hard one to get across the line. Across the line it is and Rishi Sunak did an admirable job. So what does it all mean for you hard working self employed folk out there? Let’s find out!

Tax and NI Calculator (Members Only)

Here's the tax and NI calculator I used on this recent video so that you can play along at home. It's just designed for smaller businesses and doesn't cater for higher tax bands or more complex tax scenarios.

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Surviving a Tax Audit in the UK – What did HMRC ask for?

There are few things in life more stressful than a tax audit. Just when you think you’re on top of things that little brown envelope comes through the post and inside is an ominous looking letter. Not printer on the usual white paper but instead on a scary looking grey paper. At the top of the letter is says “Check of Self Assessment tax return for the year ended 5 April 2013” (in my case) and it’s accompanied by a leaflet “General information about compliance checks”. You’re being audited by HMRC and it’s time to put your record keeping to the test.

Why does the UK tax year start on 6th April?

The UK tax year for self employment and personal tax runs from 6th April to the following 5th April. An unusual set of dates considering most countries run from 1st January. Ever wondered why the UK tax year starts on 6th April? Let me try to explain…