VAT and CIS Tax Return Deadline Guide

Taxes are not meant to burden the individual. The fact remains that deadlines do. With the hustle bustle of the busy lives, forgetting to pay the tax is not unusual. This is the prime reason why the Tax Deadlines seem burdensome. If you have wanted to submit VAT return, and missed the deadline, to pay the fine may seem to be the most common way of handling the problem. The problem is the step wise sequence which needs to be followed.

What is VAT?

Value Added Tax or VAT as it is commonly called is the most frequently paid tax that the government levies on the various products and services that are offered to the consumers. And for each financial year the deadlines remain fixed.

What is CIS?

CIS is also a national Tax which needs to be paid. Technology enables the methods to Pay VAT online. Even if you wish to submit CIS return, online methods are the easiest and time saving ways.

By typing in the government website, you just need to fill the details and make the payments. In fact, in this way the receipts are also printed online immediately and you can easily keep them for record keeping.

The first and the foremost step is to avoid missing the deadline altogether. Every financial year, if you have just paid the taxes, your worries are over. But there are many cases where in the deadline is missed. And there are different ways in which the extension for the Tax Deadline can be sought. The point that is to be understood here is that HMRC does allow leverage in terms of tax Deadline if missed for the first time. A Surcharge Liability Letter is issues that place you in the Surcharge period for the first twelve months after you have missed the deadline. And in case you happen to miss another deadline during this period, there are chances that the charges and fines incurred would be based on the amount that is accumulated as per the VAT payments.

Here is what to do in case you do not want to miss a deadline

  1. An online account created would help you keep a track of your deadlines. Setting reminders to ensure that you do not miss the deadline is the best possible way to avoid the deadline being missed.
  2. The deadline that is finalised for submitting the VAT return online is normally placed at One month and Seven Days after the end of the accounting period of the Tax
  3. Direct Debit is the most efficient way in which the deadline may be adhered with. This is with respect to the different banks and internal systems that would automatically deduct the payment from your account. For this of course and authorisation needs to be granted to the bank.
  4. Other methods could also include online payments made on the website of the department through the cards linked to your account
  5. Alternatively, a cheque may also be used for the same.

So normally there are two ways in which a missed Tax Deadline can be accommodated. One of course as described earlier would be the extension of the deadline which is granted under specified conditions. Secondly, the next method would be to immediately pay the tax once the date is missed and therefore the payments and fines should be included.

While there are other ways in which the taxes can be paid, the fact remains that better payment of taxes on time is the most probable solution for all the problems and if you are wondering why the taxes should be paid, we tell you how it makes sure that your business is well planned and better projected. Considered to be the most ethical way to conduct the business, the companies that pay the taxes on time gain more faith from the customers thereby increasing the business that has been generated. While the company taxes are meant to increase the well-being of the government, the taxes actually help the companies avail the best services from the government.

It may also be noted that while most of the taxes can be paid by self, and require just an online login, professional help in terms of guidance and calculations is also easily available. This is probably why filing the returns right before the deadlines finish is so important.

To help the masses fill up the taxes before the deadline, the instructions and directives are clearly mentioned in an easy to understand English and cater to the simple steps that are needed to fulfil the requirements.

Nile Patel has years of experience in developing cloud accounting software for accountancy firm and now have come up with his own online accounting product Easy Accountax. Nile has been working closely with accountants across UK to develop one of the best accounting software in the market with destructive pricing and unique features which no one else offers.