If you are on this page upon looking for how to do your own tax return for a company, you might already know a bit about what is a company tax return.

If you are self-employed and operate your own company, you must file what is known as a Self Assessment tax return. This is done so that you may pay the correct amount of Income Tax and National Insurance. 

Filing your taxes for the first time might be intimidating. But it doesn't have to be that way. They're a lot easier than they appear if you're prepared, organised, and understand what you'll be asked for. It's critical that you understand yours so that you can submit it correctly and avoid fines.

Register for a self-assessment

If you haven't already registered with HMRC, you'll need to do so as a single trader. You'll only have to do this if any of the following things apply to you: 

• In the tax year, you earned more than £1,000 from self-employment (6 April 2020 to 5 April 2021). 

• You wish to qualify for benefits by making voluntary Class 2 National Insurance payments. 

• You must provide confirmation that you are self-employed. 

• You must then tell HMRC that you want to pay tax through Self Assessment. Fortunately, registering is simple: you can either do it online or fill out an on-screen form, print it, and mail it.

• When you sign up for Self Assessment, you'll be given a 10-digit code that uniquely identifies you. A Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number is what this is. You'll need to use this while filling out your tax return, so keep it handy for the next stages. 

• Remember that you must register for Self Assessment by October 5th of your business's second tax year. So, if you become a self-employed worker between the 6th of April 2020 and the 5th of April 2021 (i.e. the 2020/21 tax year), your registration date is the 5th of October 2022.

Complete and submit your self-assessment tax return

Once you've acquired all of the necessary information, it's time to complete and file your tax return. Take a deep breath — it's not as terrifying as it sounds! 

If you want to do things the old-fashioned way, you may fill out the SA100 tax return form, print it off, and mail it to HMRC. The deadline for submitting a paper tax return is October 31st.

You can alternatively go the contemporary method and file your Self Assessment tax return online (this is our preferred approach, for reasons that will become evident...). You may either use HMRC's online services or Self Assessment tax return software such as GoSimpleTax to file an online tax return. 

A self-employed person will have to initially fill out two forms: the SA100 and either the SA103S or the SA103F (either if your annual turnover was greater than the VAT threshold for the given tax year or if your annual turnover was above the VAT threshold). 

However, depending on your other sources of income, you may need to complete certain other forms, such as work income (SA102), UK property income (SA105), overseas income (SA106), trust income (SA107), and capital gains income (SA107) (SA108).

While the form or forms may look daunting at first, you will only need to complete the portions that are relevant to you. The HMRC's 'How to Fill in Your Tax Return' guidance notes might be of use here. 

Our software is wonderful because it automatically fills in the areas of the form that are important to you depending on the information you submit. It even tells you whether it believes you've made any mistakes or if you're eligible for any tax breaks. Isn't that convenient? 

The amount of tax you owe will be determined automatically now that you've filed your tax return. HMRC can assist you with filing your tax return.

Late submission deadlines and penalties

The deadline for online tax returns, as with all self-employed individuals, is midnight on the 31st of January after the end of the tax year. This is also the deadline for paying any taxes owed and making your first payment on account (advance payment towards your bill for the next tax year). 

The deadline is October 31st at midnight for paper tax returns. This means you get an extra three months if you do it online. On the 31st of July, there is usually a second payment on account deadline as well. 

Failure to send your Self Assessment tax return or pay your tax bill on time might result in a penalty, so it pays to plan ahead of time.

Claim your permitted expenses

Penalties, on the other hand, should be avoided at all costs. In fact, we're guessing you'd like to save money anywhere you can. As a lone proprietor, you can deduct a variety of company expenditures. 

Among the most typical costs claimed by sole proprietors are:

• Inventory and raw materials 

• Fees for professional services (such as lawyers and accountants). 

• Expenses for the home office (like working from home allowance and stationery). 

• Automobile expenditures 

These expenses, as long as they were expended strictly for business operations, can be deducted from your total taxable income, potentially resulting in a lower tax burden.

Record-Keeping 

Aside from completing Self Assessment tax reports and paying Income Tax on your profits, accounting is one of your primary tasks as a solo operator. This is essentially a record of your company's daily transactions, such as bank statements and receipts. It's a good idea to save these in case HMRC opens an inquiry against you. This way, you'll have all of the proof they're looking for.

Conclusion

You must first finish your tax return, so don't put it off until the last minute. HMRC may levy a fine if you fail to file your return or pay your bill by the deadline. To negotiate a Time to Pay plan, call the HMRC Self Assessment payment helpdesk at 0300 200 3822. The gov.uk website has a lot of Self Assessment assistance, and you may also phone the Self Assessment helpdesk at 0300 200 3310. However, in prior years, HMRC's phone lines have been down, so make sure you leave extra time to contact them if necessary.

I hope this article on the company tax returns was helpful and provided you with some clarity. You can also check our articles on tax returns, company formation, company tax, limited company, companies house, corporation tax bill, self-assessment return and more on our website.