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Understanding your Self Assessment Statement

When you send HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) a Self Assessment tax return you will get a Self Assessment Statement showing what tax you owe and how to pay. If you've paid too much it'll show how much you'll be repaid. If you send your tax return online you can view your statement before it comes in the post.

What you pay and when you pay it

Your tax bill won't always match the amount you calculated on your Self Assessment tax return. That's because sometimes you'll owe 'balancing payments' for the previous year or 'payments on account' for the current year.

Balancing payments

You may have to pay a 'balancing payment' for the previous tax year. This includes any tax you owe and any interest due on late payments and penalties. The balancing payment takes account of any payments you've already made. You'll have to make the balancing payment by 31 January after the end of the tax year.

For example, for the tax year 2010-11 (6 April 2010 to 5 April 2011) the balancing payment will be due on 31 January 2012.

Why are balancing payments due?

If the right amount of tax hasn’t been collected during the previous tax year, a balancing payment will be due, for example if:

  • you have untaxed income that's not been included in your PAYE tax code
  • you have been taxed at the basic rate on investment income, but are liable to higher rate tax
  • you have Capital Gains Tax to pay

Payments on account

You'll usually have to make 'payments on account' of the current year's tax. You'll have to make two payments, one by 31 January in the current year and the other by the following 31 July. Each payment is half of the tax due for the previous year.

For example, for the tax year 2011-12 (6 April 2011 to 5 April 2012) the first payment on account will be due on 31 January 2012. The second payment on account will be due on 31 July 2012.

You'll have to make payments on account if your previous year's tax was over £1,000 - unless more than 80 per cent of the previous year's liability was covered by tax taken off at source.

For example, if your liability is under £1,000 in 2010-11 you will not have to make payments on account on 31 January and 31 July 2012 towards your 2011-12 liability, but will instead make a single payment on 31 January 2013.

If you think your payments on account are too high

If you know that your income for the current year will be lower than last year's you can ask to reduce your payments on account. But:

  • you'll have to pay interest on any extra tax that HMRC later find was due
  • you might have to pay a penalty if you ask to reduce the payments without taking proper care

You can reduce your payments on account on your tax return and explain why in the 'Additional Information' section. You can also use form SA303 to claim to reduce your payments or to change your earlier claim.

If you realise that you've reduced your payments by too much - perhaps because your income turns out to be higher than you thought - please tell your Tax Office straight away.

You can use form SA303 or ring HMRC on the phone number on your Self Assessment statement. If you delay, you may have to pay interest, additional charges or a penalty.

Mistakes

If HMRC finds you've made a mistake with your calculations, your statement will show the right amount. You'll receive a tax calculation showing how HMRC worked out the correct figure.

What's on your Self Assessment Statement

At the top right of your Self Assessment Statement you'll find:

  • the statement number and date
  • your ten-digit Unique Tax Reference (UTR) number
  • your National Insurance number
  • if you're employed, your employer's tax reference

You'll also find phone numbers for any queries.

The parts of your statement

Your statement shows the balance from your last statement (what you owed then) and details of any changes since your last statement was issued. These may include:

  • amounts you've paid - with 'CR' beside them
  • any remaining tax due for the previous tax year - the 'balancing payment'
  • any penalties you may owe
  • any interest or additional charges (called 'surcharges') you owe
  • details of your 'payments on account' due now
  • any 'payments on account' about to become due (within the next 45 days)
  • any repayments due to you - marked 'CR' - some repayments are subjected to internal security checks and as a result may be processed a few days after the date shown on your statement
  • interest repayable to you if you paid too much tax - marked 'CR'
  • a summary box showing the overall account balance

If you're due to make a payment, you'll find a pay slip at the bottom of the statement. Instructions for how to pay are on the back of the statement.

Penalties, interest or surcharges on your statement

If you're late paying any tax you owe, HMRC may charge you interest, penalties and surcharges. Your statement might also include interest and/or penalties you've got to pay because of an error found during a check into your tax return.

When is the Self Assessment Statement issued?

You can expect to get a Self Assessment Statement:

  • within 45 days of a payment becoming due
  • when underpaid tax is going to be collected through PAYE (Pay As You Earn)
  • when you've paid too much tax
  • after a check into your return changed the tax due
  • if an entry in your last statement has changed

Read your Self Assessment Statement online

If you file your return online your tax is worked out automatically and you can see what you owe straight away. You'll also be able to check your earlier statements, along with other details of your tax history.

HMRC will still send you a paper Self Assessment Statement, usually 45 days before payment is due.

How to view your Self Assessment Statement online

If you've already registered for the Self Assessment Online service and have activated the service, you can view your statement online. If you haven't registered yet - and even if you sent HMRC a paper tax return - you can register now.

More useful links

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