HMRC closed all their Enquiry Centres in 2014 but now offer a specialised service to help people struggling with filing their self-assessment returns by the 31 January deadline.
20/01/2015, by Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, Tax Articles - General
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HMRC’s specialised service is intended for people who are new to self-assessment (SA) or who may not have used the online system before and need extra support.
For those who need extra support
HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) ‘needs extra support’ service is for people with particular needs who may struggle to access the standard services for tax and tax credits queries, such as
- those with speech or hearing impairments
- migrant workers with limited English.
It offers a more supportive and continual telephone service or, in some cases, face-to-face assistance.
You can access the service by telephoning the normal HMRC helpline number for your query. The adviser will ask about your query to assess your need and put you through to the appropriate team if you meet the criteria. If you are hard of hearing or unable to use the telephone, you can ask for a face-to-face appointment with one of HMRC’s mobile teams by using the online booking form. Once your query is correctly allocated and your needs have been assessed, you can ask for the adviser to call you back and they will help you resolve your query step by step, or offer help to file your return.
The extra support service is not just for SA filing, though; it is open all year. So bear this in mind if you need extra support with your affairs and make a note of how to get the help you need.
For others
Even if you do not need this ‘extra support’ service, contacting HMRC can sometimes be a difficult and frustrating process. For example, HMRC have an automated system on their telephone helplines, and the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) provides some ‘hints and tips’ to help you to negotiate it.
The links accessible via the LITRG website (under Useful Links below) might also be of assistance as you navigate the SA peak:
- HMRC helpline numbers
- HMRC general website accessibility information for all its customers, including those with disabilities
- HMRC’s online appointment request form for hearing- or speech-impaired customers or if you have difficulty using a phone
- How to appoint an agent, friend or family member to deal with HMRC on your behalf
- LITRG's own guidance on how to get help with your tax affairs.
HMRC’s telephone lines will be busy in January, so you may find it quicker to find some help for yourself from other sources, such as LITRG's own self-assessment guide.
Filing your return
Filing a return takes a number of steps so do make a start as soon as possible. For example:
- Before you start, read the guidance available on how to send your Self-Assessment tax return online.
- If you have not filed an SA return online before, you will need to register for the online service in good time as it may take up to seven days for you to receive a PIN through the post.
- You will need to activate your account.
- You will need to choose either HMRC free online pages to file your return or buy commercially available software.
- You will need to answer questions about your earnings and expenses as you complete pages of the return.
- You can check the progress of your return using the ‘% complete bar’ on screen.
- You can check your calculation, once finalised, to see how much you have to pay.
- Do remember to press the submit button once it is showing '100% complete' and wait for your on-screen acknowledgment.
- Once you receive your online acknowledgement, you can view and print a copy of your SA return and acknowledgment by following the 'View and print' link on the page.
- You can also save a copy to your computer.
Good luck!
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