HMRC tax payments

Ok, so if you know you're going to owe a small tax bill to HMRC at the end of the UK tax year, do you need to be paying on it as time goes by, or can you just pay it as a lump sum at the end of the tax year without any penalty?

Here you go. 

https://www.gov.uk/pay-self-assessment-tax-bill

Ok, so if you know you're going to owe a small tax bill to HMRC at the end of the UK tax year, do you need to be paying on it as time goes by, or can you just pay it as a lump sum at the end of the tax year without any penalty?

No penalties if you owe money when you do your SA as long as you pay it on time, by January 31st. I pay estimated taxes as scheduled by HMRC for the coming year in January and July but because of exchange rate fluctuations I have ended up under paying by hundreds this last 2 years and simply pay that under payment after I do my SA. No penalty, no equivalent of the IRS “safe harbor “ calculation to avoid under payment. (At least  at the level of my returns). At some point I’m sure the exchange rate will go against me and I will have overpaid to HMRC by hundreds, which I expect I can apply to the next year’s estimated payment.

No penalties if you owe money when you do your SA as long as you pay it on time, by January 31st. I pay estimated taxes as scheduled by HMRC for the coming year in January and July but because of exchange rate fluctuations I have ended up under paying by hundreds this last 2 years and simply pay that under payment after I do my SA. No penalty, no equivalent of the IRS “safe harbor “ calculation to avoid under payment. (At least  at the level of my returns). At some point I’m sure the exchange rate will go against me and I will have overpaid to HMRC by hundreds, which I expect I can apply to the next year’s estimated payment.

Is that 31 Jan of the year following? So, for a hypothetical: If you know you're going to owe about £500 for the tax year ending April 2020, you have to pay it by 31 Jan 2021?    I assume I'll file the tax return as soon as is possible in April. They will turn around and tell me exactly what they think I owe, correct? And I could send it in then?

Is that 31 Jan of the year following? So, for a hypothetical: If you know you're going to owe about £500 for the tax year ending April 2020, you have to pay it by 31 Jan 2021?    I assume I'll file the tax return as soon as is possible in April. They will turn around and tell me exactly what they think I owe, correct? And I could send it in then?

Yes, it's the January of the next calendar year. You can file as soon as you have all the relevant information. If you file on paper, it takes a while (can be several weeks) for them to process. If you file online I think you find out immediately how much you owe. You can pay as soon as you like or wait a bit if you prefer.

The deadlines for filing are October 31st of the same calendar year for paper and Jan 31st of the next calendar year for online.

https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns/deadlines

Thanks.

Yes, it's the January of the next calendar year. You can file as soon as you have all the relevant information. If you file on paper, it takes a while (can be several weeks) for them to process. If you file online I think you find out immediately how much you owe. You can pay as soon as you like or wait a bit if you prefer.

The deadlines for filing are October 31st of the same calendar year for paper and Jan 31st of the next calendar year for online.

https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns/deadlines

Exactly. I usually file online in October and then I know how much I will have to pay in January to complete the underpayment, if any, for the year just passed plus the first estimated payment for the next tax year also due by Jan 31st, and the SA also shows how much I have to pay for the 2nd estimated payment due by July 31st.  I find the tax planning pretty straightforward.

I make the payments online through my HMRC account.