Made a Mistake on Your Tax Return? Should You Amend It?
November 23, 2020
Many business owners believe in filing their self-assessment tax returns on their own. In practice, one can’t say much about whether this is a good move or a bad one, though it does stand to note that there is a certain amount of risk involved. There are possibilities that you might not claim back a certain amount of tax or that you might accidentally fill in a wrong return. However, if a mistake has been made, amending this or making a correction is always possible. But there is a deadline to consider, and deadlines have certainly added to the pressure. For example, if you are to make a change, then you need to do this at least by the year that is after the deadline for filing of the year that you are amending. That means if you need a change in your return for the 2016 to 2017 tax year, that change would be acceptable only till 31 January, 2019.
But what if you want to amend your company’s tax return, then what are the rules? Generally, the changes or amendments window is open to a 12-month period of the deadline for filing. In most cases, you need to make the changes online by logging into HMRC’s web portal. But if you’ve missed the deadline, then things become sticky as then you need to write to the HMRC and explain the scenario.
Outsource your work – Stay happy
Finding out that you’ve made a mistake in your tax calculations and that more tax might have been deducted due to this is not something anyone would want to face. Not only is this an increasingly unpleasant scenario, but also people do not like to be caught between the frying pan and the fire. Instead, it would be much simpler and time-savinbg and peace-giving saving to opt for an outsourcing partner to do the same. The plus point of this is, you only need to pay for the work you want to be done, and so there is no burden on you. Once the job is done, it is solely up to you if you desire to provide other work.
Multiple HMRC dealings – Time is money
Considering the number of changes that are coming in due to the pandemic situation, it certainly makes sense to take things slow. For example, if you are paying furlough to your employees and then also dealing with the pension’s element handling the tax returns at the same time might not be that easy a task to do. Thus, if you do go for outsourcing, at least you have the benefit of having allocated your work to someone else. As far as managing a business goes, the prime role of any organizational head is to focus on the proper delegation of work. Without proper-delegation, work cannot be distributed and one cannot work as efficiently as possible. Hence, it indeed makes sense to focus on delegating the tasks that you are not at ease with someone more proficient in the same.
Refunds and payment of tax
After making an amendment, usually, there are two possibilities. Either you would have to pay pending tax, or you are entitled to a refund. If it is the former, it would be better if you have an expert looking at things as it is possible that you haven’t made clear all the tax-efficient choices at hand. And if you are entitled to a refund, you need to arrange for this to be sent to the right account. Therefore, trusting a professional with this work definitely would be simple and less taxing!