Money News
Millions of new look tax returns will be dropping onto doormats from this week, following a revamp of the main self assessment (SA) tax return.
The new look return now has fewer questions, simpler language and an improved layout. It's designed to be easier to understand and complete for all SA customers but, in particular, for those who are self-employed or who don't use an accountant to complete their return.
Other changes to the paper return include:
A new page for additional information - questions completed by relatively few people about less common types of income and reliefs have been moved to a new, separate 'Additional Information' page, which is included in the return pack.
A new short, self-employment page - a two-page form with fewer boxes to complete is being introduced for smaller, straightforward businesses with an annual turnover below £64,000.
An increased 'three line account' threshold - the limit for completing simpler, abbreviated accounts information has been doubled to £30,000.
Reordered questions - a person's main source of income is now at the front of the return, rather than the end, ensuring customers answer questions most relevant to them first. A redesigned version of the online SA return is also now available.
All the changes have been made following a two-year pilot, which involved more than 7,000 SA customers. From this year, there are also changes to the SA deadlines - paper returns must now be filed by October 31st, while the deadline for online returns remains at January 31st.
The main tax return for individuals has essentially remained in the same format since it was introduced in April 1997. A shorter, simpler four-page short tax return was introduced in April 2005 for people within self assessment who have more straightforward tax affairs, including: employees, the self-employed with turnovers below £15,000, and pensioners. Meanwhile, the turnover threshold for the self-employed has been increased to £30,000 from 2007-08.
10 April 2008 © Moneyextra.com
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