HMRC logs 11.5 million on-time tax returns but 1.1 million miss the 31 January deadline
A record online filing rate could not stop about 1.1 million taxpayers, contractors among them, missing the 31 January deadline and the penalties that follow.
More than 11.5 million people filed a Self Assessment tax return by the midnight deadline on 31 January 2025, HM Revenue and Customs confirmed, but roughly 1.1 million missed it and now face an immediate £100 penalty. For the many IT contractors who file to declare dividends, freelance earnings or other income outside PAYE, the annual scramble again showed how much rides on a single date.
A familiar late rush
The figures, published by HMRC on 4 February, covered returns for the 2023 to 2024 tax year. Some 732,498 people filed on deadline day itself, with the busiest hour running from 16:00 to 16:59, when 58,517 returns were logged. A further 31,442 left it until the last hour, submitting between 23:00 and 23:59. In all, 97.36% of returns were filed online rather than on paper, and about 90.5% of those required to send a return did so on time.
Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC's Director General for Customer Services, said: "Thank you to the millions of people and agents who filed their Self Assessment tax return and paid any tax owed by 31 January. I'm urging anyone who missed the deadline, to submit their return as soon as possible to avoid any further penalties." HMRC again steered customers towards its online guidance and app, and repeated warnings about scam messages offering bogus tax rebates around the deadline.
The price of missing the date
Late filing triggers an automatic £100 penalty even where no tax is owed. After three months, daily penalties of £10 apply, up to a maximum of £900; after six and twelve months, further charges of 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater, can follow. Unpaid tax also accrues interest, charged at 7.25% at the time of the deadline under HMRC's base-rate-plus-2.5% formula.
HMRC pointed those unable to pay in full towards its Time to Pay service, which lets Self Assessment customers with bills of up to £30,000 spread the cost over monthly instalments across a maximum of 12 months, without having to telephone the department. The late-payment penalty can be avoided where such an arrangement is set up in time.
What it meant for contractors
Although the off-payroll reforms of 2021 moved many contractors onto agency or client payrolls, those still working outside IR35 through their own companies remained squarely within Self Assessment, filing to account for dividends and other untaxed income. For those limited-company contractors, the 2023 to 2024 return was the first to reflect a dividend allowance cut to £1,000, halved from £2,000 the year before. The change pulled more personal service company directors into declaring dividend income, and in some cases into a larger bill. Those making payments on account felt the interest charge most keenly: at 7.25%, an overlooked balance mounted quickly.
The Time to Pay route offered a cushion, but only for those who filed first, since a plan cannot be arranged until the return is submitted and the liability is known. Contractors who left both to the final hours therefore had the least room to manage a bill they could not immediately clear.
With Making Tax Digital for Income Tax due to reach sole traders and landlords earning above £50,000 from April 2026, the 31 January ritual looks unlikely to get any simpler.