If you’ve left your tax return until the last minute, it is easy to rush it, resulting in mistakes. This may mean that you pay more tax than necessary or the mistake gets discovered by HMRC further down the track, creating later problems.

How to avoid mistakes

Set aside enough time to complete your tax return and ensure you have all the information you need before starting. As a tax return can be confusing, it may also be worthwhile asking a professional such as an accountant to complete it for you. An internet search will show who is available in your area. Anyone looking for accountants Chippenham will find results such as chippendaleandclark.com/.

While there are many mistakes that could be made, there are four common ones:

Forgetting Bank Interest

It’s easy to do. You’re so busy making sure all your self-employed income is up to date that you forget about the interest earned in your bank accounts. This will include your business and personal bank accounts and your share of interest from bank accounts that you share with a partner.

Income and Expenses to Come

If you use the accruals basis of accounting, you will need to declare your income on all work completed in that tax year, even if you had not been paid for that work by the end of the tax year. You will also need to record all costs incurred that year, even if you have not yet paid them.

This does not apply if you are using a cash basis. See for more information.

Forgetting Salaried Income

If you also have a job with a salary as well as running a business, you must declare this income and how much tax has been deducted. This information can be found on your P60 which you should receive each year.

Forgetting a PAYE Notice of Coding

If your PAYE tax code changes, you may find you have under or overpaid tax and these details will be recorded on your notice of coding. This information should be declared on your tax return.