Say ‘bye-bye’ to paper tax returns

On 6 April 2023 HMRC is finally removing the download links for paper Self Assessment Tax returns. Paper returns will still be available for the visually impaired and taxpayers who are over 70 and have not yet filed online.

This move is long overdue: HMRC announced that it was moving to the government’s policy of Digital by Default as far back in 2012 . It then announced that, "The Paperless Self Assessment exemplar transforms a well-used online filing service to a complete digital service eliminating 20m paper notifications and 750,000 phone calls from the SA system."

The 2012 strategy document indicated that once HMRC's transformation is complete taxpayers can receive notifications by SMS (text) instead of having to contact HMRC by telephone. 

Taxpayers can already file Self Assessment online using HMRC’s own software or third-party software and Apps, or they can delegate by using the services of an accountant or tax adviser.

HMRC's Making Tax Digital for Self Assessment project is unaffected by any changes to paper returns. This measure was postponed again in December 2022, and the current timeline is as follows:

• From April 2026, self-employed businesses and landlords with business turnover above £50,000 are to report under MTD for Income Tax. 
• From April 2026, self-employed businesses and landlords with business turnover above £30,000 are to report under MTD for Income Tax. This measure was postponed again in December 2022.

Useful guides on this topic

Making Tax Digital: Index & timeline
When does Making Tax Digital (MTD) apply? What does Making Tax Digital really mean? How will it affect you? Does MTD mean quarterly reporting? Is my business exempted from Making Tax Digital?

Making Tax Digital: Survival guide (for the self-employed & landlords)
The way that some self-employed taxpayers report their business profits to HMRC is set to change under the Making Tax Digital (MTD) for business regime, when it begins to apply to Income Tax reporting.