Our five minute read, Tax Tips for UK doctors and dentists will help you save tax, get you organised with your tax affairs and make you feel at ease that everything is taken care of.
This article does not constitute advice. Professional advice should be taken prior to acting on any part of it. The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate tax advice.
The deadline is approaching
The deadline for filing your self-assessment tax return online is only days away. Hopefully, you have completed everything already, with plenty of time to save for your final payment.
If not, the time to complete your filing online is now, before it becomes too late and you miss the 31st January deadline.
Before we continue, it is important to note that not everyone is entitled to submit their tax return online. You may need to use an alternative system for the self-assessment tax return:
- for a partnership
- for a trust or estate
- if you lived abroad as a non-resident
- if you get income from a trust, you’re a Lloyds underwriter or you are a religious minister
Source: HMRC
On 31st January a well as submitting your self-assessment tax return and paying any tax you owe, you are also required to make your first payment on account.
Payment on account explained
If you are self-employed doctor or dentist you are required to make advance payments towards the tax you will owe. This causes confusion for some people, as they are not aware that they have to do this. These payments are called ‘payments on account’.
In fact, you have to make two ‘payments on account’ during the year. The first is on 31st January and the second is on 31st July. If after making these payments, you still owe tax, you will have to make a ‘balancing payment’ by mid-night on 31st January the following year.
How to make payment
To ensure your payment reaches them on time, HMRC provide various options for you to make payment.
Same or next day
- online or telephone banking
- CHAPS
- by direct or credit card online
- at the bank or building society
- at the Post Office
If you are paying via your bank or building or through the Post Office, you will need a paying-in slip from HMRC.
3 working days
- BACS
- direct debit (make sure you already have this set up with HMRC)
- via cheque through the post
5 working days
- direct debit (make sure you already have this set up with HMRC)
If the deadline falls on a weekend or on a bank holiday, please make sure your payment reaches HMRC on the last working day before the deadline.