Specialist medical accountants have warned GP locums against using HMRC’s Self Assessment extension after the tax body pushed the payment deadline back a month.
The month’s grace will come as a relief, one specialist medical accountant advises, but GP locums may not be aware that it does not stop interest running on late paid tax.
Liz Densley, accountant at Honey Barrett and long-time NASGP contributor, advised making an estimated payment on account if possible.
Submitting the return after 31 January will mean an extension to the enquiry time limits too, she added: “As an accountant on the receiving end of late tax returns I can only strongly advise people to get themselves organised so that their return can be done earlier in the year.
“The risks of getting the return wrong are much higher when it is done in a hurry, with no time for a considered review before it is signed, no time to plan or to save for the tax that is due.
“Even the practicality of paying tax is trickier when it’s left to the last minute – many bank accounts have daily payment limits which for high earners may mean tax has to be paid over three or more days.”
NASGP advises locums who have not yet paid to do so as quickly as possible. Late amounts attract daily interest at 2.75% (annualised rate), with a further 5% surcharge from 1 April.
Dr Richard Fieldhouse, chair of NASGP, said: “The only thing worse than paying tax is having to pay interest on tax. We can see quite clearly from the data on LocumDeck that this January has been the busiest month ever for locums, so it’s completely understandable for anyone to have applied for this extension. But rather than leave it till the end of the month – bearing mind interest is applied daily – and risk paying a surcharge, we suggest you pay as soon as you can.
“Your LocumDeck already includes a very popular accounts package, Bookkeeper, so going forward it makes sense to try and get your self-assessment done well in advance of the 31 January deadline.”
Read Liz Densley’s advice in full on NASGP’s members-only Knowledgebase . Sign up to a free trial to access content today.