The prospect of no longer needing to submit a yearly income tax return is appealing!
A few taxpayers with very straightforward tax affairs will, it seems, come out of the Self Assessment system entirely with no need to make returns. For most others, the obligation to provide information to HMRC and pay tax will be unchanged, but the method and timing may alter from 2017 onwards with the use of an online HMRC account. So these online exchanges with HMRC will still be ‘tax returns’ of a sort (information passed to HMRC on which basis tax is paid). The current, annual return will remain as an option for those who prefer this.
Meanwhile for the self-employed, Class 2 national insurance, currently being merged with Class 4 for collection, is finally to go. The timing has yet to be announced.
I shall be interested to find out, and update clients, on how the new ‘tax returns’ will work, particularly for self-employed taxpayers. In general, though, any move which simplifies what is currently such an overcomplicated system has to be worthwhile.