Missed Tax Deadline? What to Do Next

If you are one of the 1.1 million people who missed the midnight tax filing and payment deadline on January 31, you should do this next.

Unless you have a good excuse, you already have a £100 fine regardless of whether you owe any tax, and interest is accruing on any tax due at 7.25 per cent a day.

Many landlords who bank with Barclays would have had the added stress of being unable to access their online accounts due to an outage at the bank.

If this led to you missing the filing and payment deadline, don't worry. Accept the punishment for late filing from HMRC and send the bills to Barclays.

HMRC will not issue refunds as their systems worked up to the deadline, but Barclays has promised to reimburse customer losses in full. However, watch out for scammers if you receive a call or email purporting to be from the bank.

The best way to contact Barclays is by app, social media or by phoning 0345 600 2323.

Don't delay your self-assessment

HMRC urges anyone who missed the deadline to file their return and pay their tax as soon as possible.

If you cannot pay the bill, HMRC will accept instalments to clear the account through a Time to Pay plan.

Time to Pay for self-assessment can be set up online if you:

• have filed your latest tax return
• owe HMRC £30,000 or less
• are within 60 days of the payment deadline
• do not have any other payment plans or debts with HMRC

HMRC will ask you about your income and spending when you set up your plan.

Asking for Time to Pay

Sometimes, the online system rejects a Time to Pay application. If this happens, contact HMRC on 0300 200 3820 between 8 am and 6 pm Monday to Friday.

HMRC will want to know why you cannot pay in full and how much you can repay each month.

They will ask if you owe other taxes, how much you earn, how much you spend and if you have savings or investments.

If you have spoken to a debt adviser, like Citizens Advice or Stepchange, you may have completed a standard financial statement with them, which HMRC will accept as evidence of your cash flow.

Your Time to Pay monthly agreement is based on how much disposable income you have after paying rent or a mortgage, utility bills, food and fixed costs, such as car loans and insurance. The typical payment is half of your disposable cash. You can pay more, which reduces the interest on the debt.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC's Director General for Customer Services, said: "Thank you to the millions of people and agents who filed their self-assessment tax return and paid any tax owed by 31 January. I'm urging anyone who missed the deadline to submit their return as soon as possible to avoid further penalties."