Understanding your Self Assessment Statement

When you send us a Self Assessment tax return you'll get a Self Assessment Statement showing what tax you owe and how to pay. If you've paid too much it'll show how much you'll be repaid. If you fill out your tax return online you can view your statement before it comes in the post.

On this page:

What you pay and when you pay it
If you think your payments on account are too high
What's on your Self Assessment Statement
When is the Self Assessment Statement issued?
Read your Self Assessment Statement online
How to view your Self Assessment Statement online

What you pay and when you pay it

Your tax bill won't always match the amount you calculated on your Self Assessment return. That's because sometimes you'll owe 'balancing payments' for the previous year or 'payments on account' for the current year.

Balancing payments

You may have to pay a 'balancing payment' for the previous tax year. This includes any tax you owe and any interest due on late payments and penalties. The balancing payment takes account of any payments you've already made. You'll have to make the balancing payment by 31 January after the end of the tax year.

For example, for the tax year 2008-09 (6 April 2008 to 5 April 2009) the balancing payment will be due on 31 January 2010.

Payments on account

You'll usually have to make 'payments on account' of the current year's tax. You'll have to make two payments, one by 31 January in the current year and the other by the following 31 July. Each payment is half of the tax due for the previous year.

For example, for the tax year 2009-10 (6 April 2009 to 5 April 2010) the first payment on account will be due on 31 January 2010. The second payment on account will be due on 31 July 2010.

You'll have to make payments on account if your previous year's tax was over £500 for 2007-08 and earlier tax years or £1,000 for 2008-09 onwards - unless more than 80 per cent of the previous year's liability was covered by tax taken off at source.

For example, if your liability is under £1,000 in 2008-09 you will not have to make payments on account on 31 January and 31 July 2010 towards your 2009-10 liability, but will instead make a single payment on 31 January 2011.

If you think your payments on account are too high

If you know that your income for the current year will be lower than last year's you can ask to reduce your payments on account. But:

you'll have to pay interest on any extra tax that we later find was due
you might have to pay a penalty if you ask to reduce the payments without taking proper care

You can reduce your payments on account on your tax return and explain in the 'Additional Information' section why you have. You can also use form SA303 to claim to reduce your payments or to change your earlier claim.

If you realise that you've reduced your payments by too much - perhaps because your income turns out to be higher than you thought - please tell us straight away. You can use form SA303 or ring us on the phone number on your Self Assessment statement. If you delay you may have to pay interest, surcharges or a penalty.

Go to form SA303 Claim to reduce payments on account

Mistakes

If you've made a mistake with your calculations, your statement will show the right amount. We'll send you a tax calculation showing how we worked out the correct figure.

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What's on your Self Assessment Statement

At the top right of your Self Assessment Statement you'll find:

the statement number and date
your 10 digit unique tax reference number (UTR)
your National Insurance number
if you're employed, your employer's tax reference

You'll also find phone numbers for any queries.

The parts of your statement

Your statement shows the balance from your last statement (what you owed then) and details of any changes since your last statement was issued. These may include:

amounts you've paid - with 'CR' beside them
any remaining tax due for the previous tax year - the 'balancing payment'
any penalties you may owe
any interest or surcharges you owe
details of your 'payments on account' due now
any payments on account about to become due (within the next 45 days)
any repayments due to you - marked CR - some repayments are subjected to internal security checks and as a result may be processed a few days after the date shown on your statement
interest repayable to you if you paid too much tax - marked CR
a summary box showings the overall account balance

If you're due to make a payment, you'll find a pay slip at the bottom of the statement. Instructions for how to pay are on the back of the statement.

How to pay your tax - find out more

Penalties, interest or surcharges on your statement

If you're late paying any tax you owe, we may charge you interest, penalties and surcharges. Your statement might also include interest and/or penalties you've got to pay because of an error found during a check into your tax return..

Tax return deadlines and penalties - read the current dates

Checks into your tax return - learn more

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When is the Self Assessment Statement issued?

You can expect to get a Self Assessment Statement:

within 45 days of a payment becoming due
every two months if you owe more than £32
every month if you owe more than £500
when underpaid tax is going to be collected through PAYE (Pay As You Earn)
when you've paid too much tax
after a check into your return changed the tax due
if an entry in your last statement has changed

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Read your Self Assessment Statement online

We'll usually send Self Assessment Statements 45 days before payment is due. But if you file your return online your tax is worked out automatically and you can see what you owe straight away. You'll also be able to check your earlier statements, along with other details of your tax history.

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How to view your Self Assessment Statement online

If you've already registered for the Self Assessment Online service and have activated the service, you can view your statement online. If you haven't registered yet - and even if you sent us a paper tax return - you can register now.

File your tax return online - find out about the benefits and how to register

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