That time of year again....Silly Season Approaches

Most non accountants won't have a clue what I mean by 'silly season'. But for us accountants and tax advisors, that time of year is approaching once again...



Silly season is the period in which we tackle the flood of last minute tax work that hits us before the January 31 deadline. Last week, we did a final ring round to those clients who we've not heard from to try and coax the work in before Christmas. Its human nature, doing stuff at the last minute, and we never expect it to go away, but if this sounds like your approach to the whole tax return thing then maybe I can persuade you that getting it done early has its pluspoints.......



The final deadline for getting returns in is 31 January 2010, if you are planning on using an accountant do consider the disadvantages in presenting information so close to the deadline:

• You will not know you tax bill until the last minute leaving you no time to save up to pay it.


• If information is missing you have the stress of rushing to provide it / get duplicates


• The accountant may not have enough time to work to reduce you tax bill because there is insufficient time to check things


• Because it is peak filing season some accountants will charge a premium.


• 'Issues' are identified late int the following tax year - if there is a better way to do something (for example treat motor costs), you will have missed 8/9 months worth of additional tax relief

If doing the return yourself, bear in mind that in January HMRC helplines are busy and overstretched, and you should leave yourself a minimum of 14 days to get registered with the government gateway and HMRC if its your first return.

In previous years, filing tax returns as close to the deadline as possible was routine as it limited the period during which the taxman could raise a tax enquiry. This is no longer the case - the 'enquiry' window' as its known is now one year from date of filing.

If your self-employed, have property or other investments, in fact if you have a tax return for any reason whatsoever, do consider giving us a call, first meeting is always free, easy free parking at City Business Park and chances are we'll be able to save on the tax bill and take all the stress of getting the return done in the process.