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Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Tuesday 13th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following reports of a 10 per cent increase in UK taxpayers missing the self-assessment filing deadline, what steps they are taking to identify the factors that may have contributed to this increase.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The number and proportion of people who haven’t filed on time this year is similar to last year. This year, 11.5m customers filed their returns by close on 31st January compared to 11.4 million last year.

1.1 million customers did not file their return by the filing date and we are currently evaluating why this might be the case, although the number is similar to last year. We will be working to improve our understanding of customers who did not file on time before considering if there are opportunities to influence that group in future campaigns.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Thursday 8th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Livermore (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 23 January (HL1648), whether they will provide forecasts of the number of people that His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs expect to fill in tax returns in each of the next five years.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

HMRC does not hold an estimate for numbers of taxpayers likely to file a Self Assessment return for the next five years. This is because over time, the size of the Self Assessment population will vary due to changes in tax legislation, operational decisions and economic factors.

Each year, following the filing deadline for Self Assessment returns, HMRC conducts analysis to forecast the likely number of Self Assessment filers in the forthcoming year and the likely impact on demand for its services. HMRC has not yet made this forecast for next year.

For taxpayers who are employees, HMRC commonly adjusts their PAYE tax code to collect extra amounts of income tax due. HMRC may also be able to use Simple Assessment to collect tax. Both methods save taxpayers from the need to complete a tax return.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Tuesday 23rd January 2024

Asked by: Lord Livermore (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 10 January (HL Deb col 8), where it was asserted that His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has forecasts for how many people will be filling in tax returns or required to pay tax, whether they will publish the forecasts for the next five years.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The estimated number of people required to pay income tax over the next five years was published in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s November 2023 Economic and Fiscal Outlook[1].

[1] Table 1.1, https://obr.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/Nov-2023-EFO-additional-taxpayers-by-tax-rate-band.pdf


Written Question
Cost of Living
Thursday 30th November 2023

Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Autumn Statement made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 22 November (HC Deb cols 325–57), what assessment they have made of impact of the level of taxation on individuals struggling with the increased cost of living.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

In recent years the government has taken significant action to support lower earners through the tax system. The significant increase to the NICs starting thresholds in July 2022 means that all workers can now earn £1,000 a month before paying any tax. A UK employee can earn more money before paying income tax and Social Security Contributions than an employee in any other G7 country.

At Autumn Statement 2023, the Government cut the main rate of employee National Insurance by 2pp from January 2024, as well as cutting and reforming taxes for the self-employed from April 2024. As a result of above-inflation increases to thresholds since 2010, and the Autumn Statement 2023 NICs cut, an average worker in 2024-25 will pay over £1,000 less in personal taxes than they otherwise would have done. From April, a full time National Living Wage worker’s take home pay will be 30% greater in real terms than it was in 2010, due to successive increases in the National Living Wage and changes to personal tax rates and thresholds.


Written Question
Personal Savings: Taxation
Thursday 26th October 2023

Asked by: Andy Carter (Conservative - Warrington South)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure consistency of collection of tax on the interest of savings that are not due until maturity of the savings bond.

Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The taxation of interest arising on savings bonds depends on the terms and conditions applying to each and may differ as not all savings bonds are the same.

Income tax is charged on the full amount of interest ‘arising’ to a person in a tax year and interest normally ‘arises’ when the amount is received or is credited to an account on which the holder is free to draw.

The terms of a savings bond may be that interest is credited each year and, once credited, the bondholder is able to draw on it. In this case, the interest arises each year and is taxed each year as it is credited.

On the other hand, it is possible that interest may be credited each year, but the terms of the bond may mean the bondholder cannot draw on it or benefit from it until the end of the term. In that case all the interest paid on the bond would be regarded as ‘arising’ when it became available to the bondholder on maturity of the bond.

This long-standing position is explained in HMRC’s guidance at SAIM2440, and there have been no recent changes.

In either case, to the extent that the interest arising in any year is not covered by personal allowances, such as the Personal Savings Allowance, the tax will be collected in the same way, usually through a taxpayer’s PAYE code or a self-assessment tax return.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Tuesday 18th July 2023

Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an equalities impact assessment of proposals for a points-based penalty regime for late submissions of tax returns.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

A new points-based penalty system was brought in on 1 January 2023 for all VAT-registered businesses. The Government published the associated screening equality impact assessment on 23 March.

An equalities impact assessment covering the new penalty system for Income Tax Self-Assessment taxpayers will be published during its introduction.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Wednesday 17th May 2023

Asked by: Lord Pearson of Rannoch (Non-affiliated - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what provision they have made for those who are unable to make their P11D returns online; and, if they have made no such provision, whether they plan to do so.

Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)

The PAYE regulations have for some time required employers to make their regular payroll reports online and now also require employers to report P11D information online. Paper routes to submit these will continue to be available for the small number of digitally exempt customers for whom the existing PAYE regulations already make provision.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Wednesday 1st March 2023

Asked by: James Murray (Labour (Co-op) - Ealing North)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of paper tax returns submitted before the 31 October deadline had (a) been processed and (b) had any arising demands for payment of tax owed issued by midnight on 31 January in financial year 2021-22.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

I refer the Honourable Member to the reply given to him on 9th February 2023, reference 140289.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Thursday 9th February 2023

Asked by: James Murray (Labour (Co-op) - Ealing North)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of paper tax returns submitted before the 31 October deadline had by midnight of the following 31 January (a) been processed and (b) had any arising demands for payment of tax owed issued in each of the last five years.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.


Written Question
Taxation: Self-assessment
Thursday 19th January 2023

Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that HMRC process refunds promptly for people owed payments following their self-assessment tax returns.

Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

HMRC has a service level agreement to issue the majority of Self-assessment (SA) repayments in 15 working days. HMRC are currently achieving this level of service, and are issuing approximately 80 per cent within 10 days, although some repayments do take longer due to additional security and compliance checks.

There is an automated process for issuing repayments resulting from the submission of online SA Returns so these will be issued when the returns are submitted, subject to any additional checks.