The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is to review the implications of changing the tax year end date from 5 April to 31 March, aligning the tax year for personal taxes with the financial year for companies. The OTS’s ‘high-level scoping document’ notes that, although the UK’s tax year has run from 6 April to the following 5 April for hundreds of years, systems based on a month end are far more common around the world.
The review will consider two alternative changes to the tax year end date:
31 March: with a corresponding ‘short’ tax year for the year of transition. Alongside the potential change, the OTS will also review practical issues associated with the current 5 April date and any alternative approaches (short of a date change) to address those difficulties.
31 December: which would bring the UK into line with other major economies including the USA, Germany and France (and Ireland, which moved from 5 April to 31 December in 2002).
In carrying out its review, the OTS will consider the potential implications for:
the exchequer, the tax gap and compliance generally;
taxpayers, employers and businesses;
HMRC, including the operation of its systems; and
interactions with other government departments and devolved administrations.
Commenting on the potential changes, Katharine Arthur, head of private client at haysmacintyre noted: ‘The move to making tax digital in 2023 will almost certainly have been a key driver behind the decision to review the tax year end date: for self-employed people in particular, balancing different deadlines for VAT and income tax can add to any administrative pressures they face.
‘Despite the transitional difficulties entailed with changing the dates, aligning the tax year end with the UK’s financial year end or with a quarter end would make considerable sense. For the self-employed and those filing overseas tax returns too, such a change could prove to be hugely beneficial in the long-term’.
The Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is to review the implications of changing the tax year end date from 5 April to 31 March, aligning the tax year for personal taxes with the financial year for companies. The OTS’s ‘high-level scoping document’ notes that, although the UK’s tax year has run from 6 April to the following 5 April for hundreds of years, systems based on a month end are far more common around the world.
The review will consider two alternative changes to the tax year end date:
31 March: with a corresponding ‘short’ tax year for the year of transition. Alongside the potential change, the OTS will also review practical issues associated with the current 5 April date and any alternative approaches (short of a date change) to address those difficulties.
31 December: which would bring the UK into line with other major economies including the USA, Germany and France (and Ireland, which moved from 5 April to 31 December in 2002).
In carrying out its review, the OTS will consider the potential implications for:
the exchequer, the tax gap and compliance generally;
taxpayers, employers and businesses;
HMRC, including the operation of its systems; and
interactions with other government departments and devolved administrations.
Commenting on the potential changes, Katharine Arthur, head of private client at haysmacintyre noted: ‘The move to making tax digital in 2023 will almost certainly have been a key driver behind the decision to review the tax year end date: for self-employed people in particular, balancing different deadlines for VAT and income tax can add to any administrative pressures they face.
‘Despite the transitional difficulties entailed with changing the dates, aligning the tax year end with the UK’s financial year end or with a quarter end would make considerable sense. For the self-employed and those filing overseas tax returns too, such a change could prove to be hugely beneficial in the long-term’.
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