Record 9.61 million on-time tax returns

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A record 9.61 million people found “inner peace” and sent their tax return on time this year, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has revealed.

With 10.34 million people in Self Assessment in 2011-12, this means that around 93 out of every 100 taxpayers (92.9 per cent) met the return deadlines – 31 October for paper and 31 January for online.

Of the 9.61 million on-time tax returns, 7.93 million (82.5 per cent) were sent online – a record number. The remaining 1.68 million (17.5 per cent) were sent on paper.

Anyone who hasn’t yet sent their 2011-12 tax return to HMRC will have already incurred a £100 late-filing penalty. To avoid any further penalties, they should send their return as soon as possible, as well as pay any outstanding tax due for the 2011-12 tax year.

The busiest day for online returns was 31 January, when HMRC received 578,000. The busiest hour occurred between 4pm and 5pm on 31 January, when 46,000 returns – more than 12 per second – were received by HMRC.­­

In the run up to the 31 January deadline, even the Christmas holidays didn’t stop the flow of online returns to HMRC, with 1,548 people putting the festivities on hold and sending their tax return online on Christmas Day, and another 4,685 on Boxing Day. New Year’s Eve saw 27,161 people celebrate by sending their tax return over the internet, while another 12,077 were suitably recovered on New Year’s Day to do the same.

Help and advice is available from the HMRC website at www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa or from the Self Assessment helpline on 0845 9000 444.