UK Tax Deadlines 2026/27

1. Overview

The UK tax calendar is anchored on a 5 April tax year boundary and the 31 January Self Assessment deadline, with the rest of the year stitched together from monthly PAYE remittance dates, quarterly VAT returns, the 6 July P11D deadline and a handful of one-off annual obligations. There are about thirty filing or payment deadlines that a single sole trader operating as a VAT-registered limited company with one employee has to track across a typical year, and missing any of them triggers an automatic penalty regime that starts the day after the deadline rather than after a grace period.

Two things matter most for compliance: knowing which deadlines apply to your tax position (a PAYE-only employee with no side income only cares about the 5 April allowance reset and ISA deadline) and knowing the penalty escalator for each, because late filing is treated differently from late payment under every regime. This page sets out every deadline that falls in the 2026/27 cycle, with the gov.uk source for each date and the penalty schedule that applies. Every figure comes from published HMRC guidance, not from interpretation.

Where the same return covers multiple taxes (Self Assessment collects Income Tax, Class 2 NI, Class 4 NI and the High Income Child Benefit Charge in one return) we treat it as a single deadline. Where the same tax has two deadlines (paper vs online Self Assessment) we list both. Bank holidays and weekends extend HMRC payment deadlines to the next working day, but filing deadlines are fixed regardless.

2. Self Assessment 2025/26 deadlines

These deadlines apply to the 2025/26 tax year (the year that ended on 5 April 2026) and fall during the 2026/27 filing cycle. If you became liable for Self Assessment for the first time in 2025/26 (started self-employment, breached HICBC, crossed the £150,000 income threshold, or began receiving dividend income above the £500 allowance) you must register first before you can file.

• 5 October 2026: deadline to register for Self Assessment if 2025/26 was your first year of liability. HMRC issues a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) by post within 10 working days, followed by an activation code for the online service. Allow three weeks between registration and first filing.
• 31 October 2026: paper return deadline. The SA100 paper form must arrive at HMRC by midnight. Almost nobody uses paper now but the deadline still applies, and HMRC rejects paper returns submitted after this date even if the online deadline has not passed.
• 30 December 2026: online filing deadline if you want HMRC to collect any tax bill under £3,000 through your 2027/28 PAYE tax code. After this date, balancing payments cannot be coded out and must be paid as a lump sum by 31 January 2027.
• 31 January 2027: online return filing deadline, balancing payment for 2025/26, and first payment on account towards 2026/27 (50% of the 2025/26 tax liability if it exceeded £1,000 and less than 80% was collected at source).
• 31 July 2027: second payment on account towards 2026/27 (the other 50%). No return to file on this date - it is purely a payment obligation.

Penalty schedule for late filing (source: gov.uk Self Assessment penalties):

• 1 February 2027: £100 automatic late-filing penalty, applied the day after the 31 January deadline regardless of whether tax is owed. Donaldson v HMRC (2016) confirmed the penalty stands even if your return shows no tax due.
• 1 May 2027: daily £10 penalty kicks in (three months late). Caps at £900 after 90 days.
• 1 August 2027: at six months late, a further £300 or 5% of the tax due (whichever is higher).
• 1 February 2028: at twelve months late, another £300 or 5%. If HMRC concludes the failure was deliberate, this rises to 70% of the tax due, and 100% for deliberate and concealed.

Late payment is a separate, stacking regime: 5% of unpaid tax at 30 days late, another 5% at 6 months, and another 5% at 12 months. Daily interest accrues at the Bank of England base rate plus 2.5 percentage points from the day after the due date until the tax is paid. HMRC interest is not a penalty and is not appealable - it is statutory compensation for the time value of money. If you cannot pay, set up a Time to Pay arrangement with HMRC; doing so before the deadline pauses late-payment penalties but not late-filing penalties.

File your Self Assessment online through your Government Gateway account at gov.uk/log-in-file-self-assessment-tax-return. Most filers can complete the return in under an hour once records are gathered. The PAYE vs Self Assessment decision tree covers who needs to file. If you are self-employed, our self-employed calculator models the Income Tax and Class 2 / Class 4 NI you will owe.

3. Self Assessment 2026/27 deadlines

These deadlines apply to the 2026/27 tax year (the year that ends on 5 April 2027) and fall during the 2027/28 filing cycle. They are included here so you can plan a full twelve-month tax calendar from this page.

• 5 April 2027: end of the 2026/27 tax year. Make any last-minute pension contributions, ISA top-ups, charitable Gift Aid donations, or CGT crystallisations before this date for them to count against 2026/27 allowances. From 6 April 2027 the new tax year begins and all allowances reset.
• 5 October 2027: deadline to register for Self Assessment if 2026/27 was your first year of liability.
• 31 October 2027: paper return deadline for 2026/27.
• 30 December 2027: online filing deadline if you want any sub-£3,000 balancing payment coded out through your 2028/29 PAYE code.
• 31 January 2028: online return, balancing payment for 2026/27, and first payment on account towards 2027/28.
• 31 July 2028: second payment on account towards 2027/28.

For sole traders and landlords with combined gross income above £50,000, the 2026/27 tax year is the first year of mandatory Making Tax Digital for Income Tax reporting (MTD ITSA). That means the deadlines above are supplemented by four quarterly digital updates during 2026/27 itself - see the MTD timeline section below. Above the threshold, you cannot file the standard annual SA100 return - MTD-compatible software submitting quarterly is mandatory.

4. PAYE and employer deadlines

Employers running payroll have monthly remittance obligations plus several once-a-year deadlines for end-of-year reporting. All figures and dates below come from gov.uk Running payroll.

Monthly PAYE / NIC remittance. The tax month runs from the 6th of one calendar month to the 5th of the next. Each month's PAYE income tax deducted, employee Class 1 NI, employer Class 1 NI, student loan deductions, and any Apprenticeship Levy must reach HMRC by:

• 19th of the month if paying by post (cheque). HMRC must receive the cheque by this date, not just have it in the post.
• 22nd of the month if paying electronically (Faster Payments, BACS, CHAPS, direct debit, online banking via debit card). The money must be cleared in HMRC's account on this date. Most employers use Faster Payments for same-day clearance.

Small employers with average monthly PAYE liability under £1,500 can opt to pay quarterly rather than monthly. Quarterly payments are due 19 (postal) or 22 (electronic) of April, July, October and January.

Annual employer deadlines covering the 2025/26 tax year, falling during 2026/27:

• 5 April 2026: end of the 2025/26 tax year. Run the final payroll of the year, ensuring all year-to-date figures are correct before generating P60s.
• 19 April 2026: deadline for the final Full Payment Submission (FPS) and Employer Payment Summary (EPS) for the 2025/26 tax year. Send the year-end FPS with the indicator set to "final submission". Late submission triggers PAYE late-filing penalties from the Real Time Information regime.
• 22 April 2026: payment deadline (electronic) for the final month 12 PAYE liability.
• 31 May 2026: deadline to issue P60 forms to every employee who was on the payroll on 5 April 2026. The P60 summarises the employee's total taxable pay and deductions for the tax year. Can be electronic (PDF) if the employee has agreed to electronic delivery.
• 6 July 2026: deadline to file P11D (benefits in kind) and P11D(b) (Class 1A NI declaration) forms for 2025/26 with HMRC. Also the deadline to give each employee a copy of their P11D, or to report payrolled benefits to them in writing.
• 19 July 2026: postal deadline to pay Class 1A NIC on benefits in kind reported via P11D(b).
• 22 July 2026: electronic deadline to pay Class 1A NIC. Same liability as 19 July but the cleared-funds date is three days later.
• 31 January 2027: deadline for employers operating a PAYE Settlement Agreement (PSA) to pay the agreed PSA liability for 2025/26.

RTI penalties. Late FPS submissions attract automatic monthly penalties under the Real Time Information regime. The penalty depends on the number of employees: £100/month for 1 to 9 employees, £200 for 10 to 49, £300 for 50 to 249, £400 for 250 or more. One late submission per tax year is forgiven. Inaccurate FPS data can trigger additional "incorrect return" penalties of up to 100% of the underpaid tax. Model your monthly employer NI bill with the Apprenticeship Levy calculator for businesses near the £3m payroll threshold, or the P11D / BIK calculator for Class 1A planning.

5. VAT quarterly deadlines

VAT-registered businesses file VAT returns quarterly under the standard scheme, with both the return and the payment due one month plus seven days after the end of each VAT quarter. Source: gov.uk VAT return deadlines.

VAT quarters are allocated by HMRC at registration. There are three stagger groups (March/June/September/December, April/July/October/January, May/August/November/February). Worked example for a business with December/March/June/September quarter ends covering the 2026/27 cycle:

• Quarter ending 31 March 2026: return and payment due 7 May 2026.
• Quarter ending 30 June 2026: return and payment due 7 August 2026.
• Quarter ending 30 September 2026: return and payment due 7 November 2026.
• Quarter ending 31 December 2026: return and payment due 7 February 2027.
• Quarter ending 31 March 2027: return and payment due 7 May 2027.

All VAT-registered businesses must comply with Making Tax Digital for VAT - keeping digital records and submitting returns through MTD-compatible software via HMRC's API. Manual gov.uk portal entry is no longer permitted for any VAT-registered business since April 2022.

VAT payment dates differ by method. Faster Payments and online debit card clear same day. BACS takes three working days, so submit by the 4th of the deadline month for an 7th deadline. Direct debit is collected three working days after the filing deadline (so 10 May for a 7 May return) - the only method that gets a built-in payment extension. Annual accounting scheme users pay monthly or quarterly instalments throughout the year and file once at year-end.

VAT penalties (post-January 2023 regime). A points-based system replaced the old default surcharge. Each late return earns one penalty point. The threshold is 4 points for quarterly filers, 5 for monthly, 2 for annual. Once you hit the threshold HMRC issues a £200 penalty plus a further £200 for each subsequent late return until the points clear. Points expire after 24 months of on-time filing if you remain under the threshold. Late VAT payment has a separate regime detailed in the penalty calendar section. Model your VAT liability with the VAT calculator.

6. Corporation Tax deadlines

Corporation Tax has the most counter-intuitive deadline structure in the UK system: payment is due before the return that calculates it. Source: gov.uk Filing your company accounts and tax return.

Standard deadlines for a company with accounting period ending 31 March 2026:

• 1 January 2027: Corporation Tax payment due (9 months and 1 day after period end). You must calculate and pay the CT bill in advance of filing the return.
• 31 March 2027: CT600 return filing deadline (12 months after period end), submitted electronically through HMRC online services or commercial software.
• 31 December 2026: full statutory accounts must be filed at Companies House (9 months after period end - one day earlier than the HMRC payment deadline). Late filing triggers Companies House penalties starting at £150.

Quarterly instalment payments (QIPs) apply if the company's augmented profits exceed the QIP threshold of £1.5 million (divided by the number of associated companies plus one, so a group of 3 companies has a £500,000 threshold per company). Under QIPs the company estimates its Corporation Tax liability and pays it in four instalments across the accounting period:

• Instalment 1: by the 14th of month 7 of the accounting period.
• Instalment 2: by the 14th of month 10.
• Instalment 3: by the 14th of month 13 (one month into the next period).
• Instalment 4: by the 14th of month 16 (four months into the next period).

For a company with a 31 March 2026 year end on QIPs, that means payments on 14 October 2025, 14 January 2026, 14 April 2026 and 14 July 2026.

Very large companies with augmented profits above £20 million pay even earlier under a separate regime starting in month 3 of the accounting period. The threshold is again divided by associated companies plus one.

CT penalties. Late filing: £100 immediately, £200 if more than three months late, plus a 10% surcharge on unpaid CT at 18 months and another 10% at 24 months. Late payment: daily interest at base rate plus 2.5% from the due date, no fixed late-payment penalty until 12 months overdue. Companies House late accounts: £150 (up to 1 month), £375 (1 to 3 months), £750 (3 to 6 months), £1,500 (over 6 months), doubled if a second late filing within two years. Model your CT bill with the Corporation Tax calculator.

7. CIS monthly deadlines

Contractors operating under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) must file a monthly CIS300 return reporting all payments made to subcontractors during the tax month. Source: gov.uk Construction Industry Scheme.

• 19th of every month: CIS300 monthly return due to HMRC for the tax month ending the 5th. So payments made between 6 May and 5 June 2026 must be reported by 19 June 2026.
• 19th of every month (postal) or 22nd (electronic): CIS deductions withheld from subcontractors must be paid to HMRC. Same dates as monthly PAYE - in practice CIS contractors combine the two payments into one to HMRC.

Nil returns are required. If no subcontractor payments were made in a month, the contractor must still file a nil CIS300 return - HMRC does not assume zero from silence. Failure to file a nil return attracts the same £100 fixed penalty as a late return with payments.

CIS penalty structure: £100 if the return is 1 day late, £200 if 2 months late, £300 or 5% of CIS deductions (whichever higher) at 6 months, and another £300 or 5% at 12 months. Persistent late filing can trigger gross payment status withdrawal, forcing the contractor to pay subcontractors net of 20% CIS deduction. Model your CIS position with the CIS calculator.

8. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax timeline

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA) replaces the annual SA100 return with quarterly digital updates plus an end-of-year finalisation. It is phased by gross income, not by net profit. Source: gov.uk MTD ITSA collection.

• 6 April 2026: phase 1 mandatory for sole traders and landlords with combined gross self-employment plus property income above £50,000 (measured against the 2024/25 tax return).
• 6 April 2027: phase 2 mandatory for combined gross income above £30,000 (measured against the 2025/26 return).
• Phase 3 TBC: extension to gross income above £20,000 is planned but not yet scheduled. Treasury's last commitment was "during the current Parliament" without a fixed date.

Quarterly update deadlines are the 7th of the month following the quarter end. For the standard 6 April / 5 July / 5 October / 5 January quarter ends:

• Q1 (6 April to 5 July): due 7 August.
• Q2 (6 July to 5 October): due 7 November.
• Q3 (6 October to 5 January): due 7 February.
• Q4 (6 January to 5 April): due 7 May.

Quarterly updates are a cumulative summary of income and expenditure to date, not a calculation of tax due. The actual tax liability is still calculated at year-end via an end-of-period statement (EOPS) and a final declaration, both due by 31 January following the tax year end (so 31 January 2028 for the 2026/27 tax year). The 31 January payment deadline for any balancing payment is unchanged.

Software is mandatory. HMRC publishes a recognised software list at gov.uk/guidance/find-software-thats-compatible-with-making-tax-digital-for-income-tax. Spreadsheets with bridging software qualify; manual gov.uk portal entry does not. Exemptions exist for digitally excluded taxpayers (no internet access, severe disability, religious objection) but are granted case by case.

9. Other annual deadlines

Several allowances and reporting obligations operate on the tax-year boundary rather than on any of the specific deadlines above.

• 5 April 2026: ISA annual subscription limit resets. Use it or lose it - the £20,000 ISA allowance does not carry forward. Same applies to the £9,000 Junior ISA limit and the £4,000 Lifetime ISA limit.
• 5 April 2026: pension Annual Allowance resets. Unused AA from the previous three tax years can be carried forward, so 2022/23 unused AA is the last year usable in 2025/26 contributions made before 5 April.
• 5 April 2026: CGT annual exempt amount resets to £3,000. Gains accrued must be crystallised before 5 April to use the year's allowance.
• 5 April 2026: Gift Aid carry-back election deadline - donations made in 2026/27 can be treated as paid in 2025/26 if the SA return is filed by 31 January 2027 with the carry-back election.
• 30 January 2027: Trust Registration Service (TRS) deadline to update changes to UK trust details for the prior tax year. Initial registration is 90 days from creation; annual updates are required even with no changes, confirming the record is current.
• 31 January 2027: amendment window closes for the 2024/25 Self Assessment return. You have 12 months from the original 31 January filing deadline to amend a return. Amendments after this date require an "overpayment relief claim" within 4 years of the end of the tax year.
• 6 July 2026: Employment Related Securities (ERS) annual return deadline for share schemes (EMI, CSOP, SAYE, SIP, unapproved). Late filing triggers a £100 fixed penalty, escalating.
• 6 July 2026: PAYE Settlement Agreement (PSA) deadline to agree the PSA with HMRC for the 2025/26 tax year. Payment of the PSA tax due follows on 22 October (electronic) or 19 October (postal).
• 31 January 2027: Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) return deadline for companies owning UK residential property worth over £500,000. ATED runs on a 1 April to 31 March year; returns are due by 30 April following the year start, with the 31 January figure being the SA deadline that may also cover ATED-related disposals.

10. Penalty calendar

Each tax regime has its own penalty escalator. The table below summarises the post-deadline charges for the main UK taxes. Interest is separate from penalties and runs throughout at the Bank of England base rate plus 2.5 percentage points.

Self Assessment late filing:

• Day 1: £100 fixed.
• Day 90 (1 May): £10/day, capped at £900 after 90 days.
• Day 180 (1 August): £300 or 5% of tax due, whichever higher.
• Day 365 (1 February next year): another £300 or 5%, up to 70% for deliberate failure, 100% for deliberate and concealed.

Self Assessment late payment:

• Day 30: 5% of unpaid tax.
• Day 180 (6 months): another 5%.
• Day 365 (12 months): another 5%.
• Daily interest from day 1 at base rate plus 2.5%.

PAYE / RTI late filing. Per-month penalties after the first missed FPS in a tax year:

• 1 to 9 employees: £100 per month.
• 10 to 49 employees: £200 per month.
• 50 to 249 employees: £300 per month.
• 250+ employees: £400 per month.
• Inaccuracy: up to 100% of underpaid tax for careless errors, 30% to 100% for deliberate.

VAT late filing (post-April 2023). Points-based:

• One point per late return.
• Threshold: 4 points (quarterly), 5 (monthly), 2 (annual).
• At threshold: £200 penalty.
• Each subsequent late return: another £200.
• Points expire after 24 months of on-time filing under threshold.

VAT late payment (post-April 2023):

• Days 1 to 15: no penalty (grace period for Time to Pay agreements).
• Days 16 to 30: 2% of unpaid VAT.
• Day 31 onwards: another 2% (so 4% total), plus a daily 4% annualised charge on the outstanding balance until paid.

Corporation Tax:

• Late filing: £100, then £200 if more than 3 months late, plus 10% of unpaid CT at 18 months and another 10% at 24 months.
• Late payment: interest from day 1 at base rate plus 2.5%, no fixed penalty until 12 months overdue.
• Companies House late accounts: £150 to £1,500 depending on lateness, doubled for repeat offences within 2 years.

Interest rate. HMRC late-payment interest is set as the Bank of England base rate plus 2.5 percentage points. As of late 2025 the base rate is 4.5%, so HMRC interest is around 7% per annum. Repayment interest paid by HMRC to taxpayers is calculated at base rate minus 1 (so around 3.5%), with a 0.5% floor. The differential is HMRC's structural advantage on overdue balances. Rates change with base-rate decisions and are updated on gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-hmrc-interest-rates-for-late-and-early-payments.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get an extension on Self Assessment?

HMRC does not grant blanket extensions on the 31 January online filing deadline. If you have a reasonable excuse (serious illness, bereavement, fire or flood at your premises, a confirmed HMRC system outage, or postal delay of a paper-only document) you can appeal the £100 late-filing penalty after it is issued by completing form SA370 or appealing through your online account within 30 days of the penalty notice. The penalty is automatic the day after the deadline regardless, so file first and appeal second. Time to Pay arrangements help with payment but not with filing.

What if I miss 31 January?

Missing 31 January 2027 for the 2025/26 return triggers an automatic £100 late-filing penalty even if you owe no tax or are due a refund. From 1 May (three months late) HMRC adds £10 per day for up to 90 days, capping the daily penalties at £900. At six months late (1 August) HMRC adds another £300 or 5% of the tax due, whichever is greater. At twelve months late a further £300 or 5% applies. Late payment penalties are separate and stack on top - 5% of unpaid tax at 30 days, 6 months and 12 months, plus daily interest at the Bank of England base rate plus 2.5%.

Are HMRC penalty appeals possible?

Yes. You have 30 days from the date of a penalty notice to appeal, either online through your Government Gateway account, by phone, or by post using form SA370 for Self Assessment penalties. HMRC will accept a "reasonable excuse" appeal if circumstances genuinely prevented you from meeting the deadline - examples include serious illness, bereavement of a close family member, a fire or flood at your business premises, a postal delay you could not have foreseen, or a confirmed HMRC system outage. Ignorance of the deadline, pressure of work, or simply forgetting are not reasonable excuses. If HMRC rejects the appeal you can ask for a statutory review or take the case to the First-tier Tribunal.

Does the £100 penalty apply if I owe no tax?

Yes. The £100 fixed late-filing penalty applies even if your Self Assessment return shows no tax due or a refund. The penalty is for missing the filing deadline, not for the unpaid tax. The Court of Appeal confirmed this in Donaldson v HMRC (2016). If you genuinely had nothing to declare you can ask HMRC to withdraw the requirement to file (a "withdrawal request") - if HMRC agrees, the penalty is cancelled. This route only works if you were never within scope of Self Assessment for the year in question, not if you simply had no tax to pay.

When do PAYE coding notices arrive?

HMRC issues most P2 coding notices for the upcoming tax year between January and March, with the bulk landing in February. The new code takes effect from the first pay date on or after 6 April. If your circumstances change during the year (job switch, new benefit, marriage allowance claim, untaxed interest exceeding £10,000) HMRC issues an in-year coding notice with a few weeks lead time before the employer applies it. You can view and challenge your code at any time in your Personal Tax Account at gov.uk/personal-tax-account. Employers receive P9 codes through their payroll software in March.

What is a Statement of Account?

A Statement of Account is HMRC's running ledger for your Self Assessment record. It shows all charges (balancing payments, payments on account, penalties, interest) and all credits (payments you have made, repayments due, refunds applied). HMRC issues them around 31 July (after the second payment on account is due) and 31 January (after the balancing payment is due), or on demand from your online account. The statement is the definitive source for what you owe or are owed - tax bills shown on the return calculation can be modified by subsequent adjustments, payments, and offsets that only appear on the statement.

Do I need to pay tax by 31 January and 31 July?

If you file Self Assessment and your previous year tax bill exceeded £1,000 (with less than 80% of it collected at source via PAYE), HMRC requires payments on account. Each is 50% of the previous year's tax liability. The first instalment is due on 31 January alongside your balancing payment for the prior year. The second instalment is due on 31 July. The balancing payment that following 31 January reconciles the two payments against your actual liability. If your income has dropped, you can apply to reduce the payments on account using form SA303 or through your online account, but HMRC charges interest if the reduction turns out to be excessive.

When are PAYE payments due each month?

Employers must pay HMRC monthly: by the 19th of the month following the tax month if paying by post (cheque), or by the 22nd if paying electronically (Faster Payments, BACS, CHAPS, direct debit, online banking). The tax month runs from the 6th to the 5th. Small employers with average monthly PAYE liability under £1,500 can opt to pay quarterly instead, with deadlines on 19 or 22 April, July, October and January. Class 1A NIC on benefits in kind reported via P11D is a separate annual payment, due 19 July (postal) or 22 July (electronic) for the previous tax year.

What is the VAT points-based penalty system?

Since 1 January 2023, HMRC replaced the old VAT default surcharge with a points-based system. Each late VAT return earns one penalty point. Once you hit the threshold (4 points for quarterly, 5 for monthly, 2 for annual filers) HMRC charges a £200 penalty plus another £200 for each subsequent late return until you bring the record back into compliance. Points expire after 24 months of on-time filing. Late VAT payment has its own separate regime: no penalty if paid within 15 days, 2% of the unpaid VAT at 16 to 30 days late, 2% plus another 2% from day 31, then a daily 4% annualised charge from day 31 onwards.

When is Corporation Tax due?

Corporation Tax payment is due 9 months and 1 day after the end of your company's accounting period - so a company with a 31 March 2026 year end must pay by 1 January 2027. The CT600 return itself is due 12 months after the period end. Companies with augmented profits above £1.5 million (divided by the number of associated companies plus one) must pay in quarterly instalments rather than a single lump sum, with instalments due months 7, 10, 13 and 16 from the start of the accounting period. Very large companies (over £20 million profits) pay even earlier under the "very large company" regime starting from month 3.

When does MTD for Income Tax start?

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA) starts on 6 April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with combined gross self-employment plus property income above £50,000. The threshold drops to £30,000 from 6 April 2027. A third phase covering income above £20,000 is planned but not yet scheduled. Under MTD ITSA you must keep digital records in compatible software, submit four quarterly updates (deadline 7 August, 7 November, 7 February, 7 May), and finalise the year with an end-of-period statement plus a final declaration by 31 January. PAYE-only employees and those under the threshold continue with the standard annual SA return.

When do I issue P60s to employees?

Employers must give every employee who was on the payroll on the last day of the tax year (5 April) a P60 by 31 May. The P60 summarises the employee's total pay and deductions for the tax year. Late issuance can attract penalties of up to £300 plus £60 per day continuing default. P60s can be issued electronically (PDF) provided the employee has agreed to electronic delivery. P11D and P11D(b) forms covering benefits in kind have a separate deadline of 6 July.

Related calculators and explainers

• Self-employed calculator - model your Income Tax and Class 2 / Class 4 NI ahead of the 31 January Self Assessment deadline.
• PAYE vs Self Assessment - decision tree for whether you need to file an SA return for 2025/26.
• VAT calculator - work out the VAT element of any gross or net figure for your quarterly return.
• Corporation Tax calculator - model your CT bill with main-rate, small-profits-rate and marginal relief logic for the 9-month-plus-1-day payment deadline.
• CIS calculator - calculate the 20% / 30% deduction on subcontractor payments ahead of the 19th-monthly CIS300 return.
• P11D / BIK calculator - model Class 1A NIC due 22 July on benefits in kind reported via P11D(b).
• How UK tax works - the canonical primer covering PAYE, NIC, Self Assessment and tax codes from scratch.
• HMRC penalties - full schedule of penalties across every UK tax with appeals process.
• Apprenticeship Levy calculator - 0.5% levy on payrolls above £3m, paid monthly with PAYE.
• Tax year-end checklist - what to action before 5 April.
• MTD ITSA 2026 timeline - quarterly reporting under Making Tax Digital from April 2026.
• HICBC explained - one of the most common reasons new filers enter Self Assessment.