There has been some confusion around Self Assessment ‘substitute’ returns, but in practice accountants and advisers should experience little or no change in this area.
Those filing online successfully will not normally need to worry about substitutes. However, knowing that a paper ‘back-up’ exists, which does not entail a return to pen and ink, can be helpful.
Previously, commercial software providers went through an approval process, so that Self Assessment returns printed out from their products would be accepted by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) as substitutes - alternatives - for the official paper forms. These substitutes had the same boxes as the official return but varied in appearance, for example colour and size. HMRC received millions of these computer-generated tax return forms on paper each year.
Lord Carter recommended that HMRC should stop accepting these computer-generated returns on paper because:
HMRC therefore ended its approvals process for most types of Self Assessment returns and stopped accepting substitutes for the:
We will continue to approve and accept substitutes for:
The proposed ban on substitutes for the main Self Assessment returns led to concern about the possibility of agents having to hand-write returns for clients whose returns cannot be filed online (or if online filing fails). HMRC therefore agreed to accept printed tax returns that are identical in format to the official versions (we refer to these as ‘identical returns’). Identical returns will be a feature of most commercial software packages – so that agents can still complete returns on a computer, print them out and submit them on paper subject to the new deadline. Returns which cannot be filed online (for example SA970) will be allowed extra time – to 31 January – for paper filing.
Early signs are that most taxpayers and agents understand the new arrangements for paper returns printed from a computer, and indications are that these arrangements are encouraging online filing. At 31 August 2008, 13 per cent of those taxpayers whose returns were filed on ‘substitutes’ last year had submitted their current return (directly or via an agent), and of those over 77 per cent were filed online.
We would encourage you to file returns online wherever possible. However, if you are filing for a client whose return cannot be filed online, or encounter an unexpected problem, you can use an identical paper return. You may wish to check with your software provider whether a return printed out from their product conforms to HMRC’s published specification for an identical return.
You may need to check your print settings when printing returns for submission as paper returns. You will need to print to A4 and plain black on white output is not permitted. Greyscale is acceptable and should be possible from all modern printers. Colour is also acceptable. You can, of course, print in pure black and white for your own or your client’s use.
When the new HMRC software was launched in April 2008 it did not include the facility to print a PDF version of the Self Assessment return information. The printout available (generated from the xml) contained the content of the return but it did not look like the paper return form. Working Together told HMRC that, while they accepted it was sufficient for agents to obtain their client’s approval of the return information, they felt it was not intuitive enough for unrepresented individuals to follow or understand. HMRC accepted their concerns and has now introduced a facility to print out a PDF version. This PDF version should not be submitted as a paper return.
Read more about clients for whom it is not possible to file online
