In his 2001 'Review of Payroll Services' and 2006 'Review of HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) Online Services', Lord Carter of Coles recommended that HMRC should aim for universal electronic delivery of tax returns from businesses and IT-literate groups by 2012.
The 2006 review delivered detailed recommendations for Self Assessment, VAT, Corporation Tax and PAYE, together with milestones for delivery of the central aim by 2012. HMRC has progressively delivered on these recommendations, building robust infrastructure and communicating the changes to customers. The following data summarises the take up of online filing for the different taxes.
Although it's not compulsory to file Self Assessment tax returns online, HMRC's online filing data shows that Self Assessment customers are making 'online' the channel of choice to file their tax return.
Year of receipt and filed by 5 April of that year |
Total returns received (online and paper) |
Online returns received |
Percentage of returns received filed online |
|---|---|---|---|
2005-06 |
8,856,552 |
2,025,425 |
23% |
2006-07 |
8,832,105 |
2,948,983 |
33% |
2007-08 |
8,837,932 |
3,853,227 |
43% |
2008-09 |
8,963,661 |
5,949,510 |
66% |
2009-10 |
8,988,029 |
6,625,382 |
74% |
2010-11 |
9,248,160 |
7,127,072 |
77% |
The online filing data for VAT Returns shows a steady increase in submitting VAT Returns online.
VAT-registered businesses with an annual turnover of £100,000 or more (exclusive of VAT) and all businesses newly registering for VAT, irrespective of turnover, have been required to submit their VAT Returns online since 1 April 2010.
And from April 2012 all remaining VAT-registered businesses will also be
legally required to submit their VAT Returns online. This means that all
VAT- registered businesses, apart from a very small number that are exempted,
will have to submit their VAT Returns online.
Year of receipt |
Total returns received (online and paper) |
Online returns received |
Percentage of returns received filed online |
|---|---|---|---|
2005-06 |
7,840,897 |
381,712 |
5% |
2006-07 |
7,856,251 |
676,891 |
9% |
2007-08 |
8,151,654 |
978,039 |
12% |
2008-09 |
8,274,220 |
1,157,373 |
14% |
2009-10 |
7,930,043 |
1,619,648 |
20% |
2010-11 |
7,829,980 |
5,218,099 |
67% |
The online filing data for Company Tax Returns shows a steady increase in filing Company Tax Returns online.
Company Tax Returns must be filed online from 1 April 2011.
Year of receipt |
Total returns received (online and paper) |
Online returns received |
Percentage of returns received filed online |
|---|---|---|---|
2005-06 |
1,344,199 |
24,761 |
2% |
2006-07 |
1,388,591 |
95,247 |
7% |
2007-08 |
1,484,360 |
153,644 |
10% |
2008-09 |
1,557,767 |
262,539 |
17% |
2009-10 |
1,582,799 |
424,912 |
27% |
2010-11 |
1,658,419 |
688,783 |
42% |
The online filing data shows that the vast majority of employers are filing their Employer Annual Returns online. Almost all employers are required to file their return online.
| Year of receipt | Total returns received (online and paper) | Online returns received | Percentage of returns received filed online |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005-06 | 1,692,632 | 1,110,347 | 65% |
| 2006-07 | 1,635,456 | 1,201,174 | 73% |
| 2007-08 | 1,600,399 | 1,334,241 | 83% |
| 2008-09 | 1,752,333 | 1,427,012 | 81% |
| 2009-10 | 1,738,195 | 1,463,210 | 84% |
| 2010-11 | 1,618,931 | 1,604,829 | 99% |
