8 Tips for Filing Your Self-Assessment Tax Return

The deadline for filing your self-assessment tax return is here.

It’s a busy time for practice accountants as they work extremely hard  filing self-assessment income tax returns on behalf of their clients.

You may not necessarily need an accountant to prepare your tax return– it really depends on the complexity of your business and your financial knowledge.

But one way or the other, if you’re self-employed, you’re obliged to file a return.

Here are 8 practical tips to make the process as smooth as possible:

1. File your return online, not by post.

Commonly known as ROS (Revenue Online Service), Revenue’s online system is very user-friendly.

Based on the information you input, it calculates your tax liability rather than you having to calculate it yourself.

And, in general, it’s much easier to use the online system rather than filling out a hard copy form and posting it. Revenue very much discourages postal returns anyway.

However, there is one group who have no option but to send in a hard copy return - for spouses married pre-1990, where Revenue added a W [wife] to the end of their PPS [Personal Public Service] number, e-registration is not possible and they must fill out a paper form.

The deadline for filing your return online is 15 November 2023.

2. Be organised.

It might seem obvious, but you need to be organised and don’t leave it to the last minute to gather all the relevant documents and records.

3. Don’t throw out or delete your documentation.

Though you’re not obliged to send in any documents, you must retain them.

Business owners [and their accountants] are required to keep all documentation pertaining to the business for at least six years, as Revenue may require the same if they carry out an audit.

4. Be clear on what expenses you can claim.

Expenses relating specifically to the business may be claimed as a deduction in your tax bill.

Claimable expenses include:

• Purchase of goods for resale

• Wages

• Rent, rates, repairs, lighting and heating

• Accountancy fees

• Interest paid on any money borrowed to finance business expenses/items

• Lease payments on vehicles or machinery used in the business.

Also, the cost of capital expenditure on items such as fixtures and fittings, and computer equipment may be written off over eight years by way of capital allowances.

But be wary – expenses relating to personal items such as for your car or mobile phone may not necessarily be claimed in full. Only the usage that relates to the business can be claimed.

5. Claim tax relief on your pension contributions.

One way to reduce your tax bill is to make pension contributions and the government is actually very generous in terms of the tax relief it offers on such contributions.

If you pay any income tax at the higher 40% band, then you can claim 40% back on your pension contributions, up to a certain limit. There are maximum amounts on which tax relief of up to 40% may be claimed depending on an individual’s age.

6. Beware of the time limitation on claiming tax relief.

It’s not just pension contributions that are eligible for tax relief. You can also, for example, claim tax relief on your medical expenses and on third-level tuition fees – both at 20%.

However, there is a time limitation. There is a general four-year time limit to submit a claim for tax relief or repayments of tax.

Therefore, taxpayers should review prior years to ensure that they have claimed any tax reliefs to which they would have been entitled, such as for medical expenses and third-level college fees.

7. Use a good software or cloud-based accounting package.

Using a reputable accounting software package can help you to be prepared and organised. If transactions are recorded regularly and accurately, it should expedite the preparation of the business accounts required to complete the tax return.

8. File on time.

Lastly, but maybe most importantly, don’t miss the deadline date.

As mentioned at the top of this article, the D-day for filing and paying for online returns is 15 November 2023, while the deadline for hard copy returns was 31 October 2023.

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If you feel you need additional support or advice with your Self-Assessment Tax Return please feel free to get in touch.