HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has said that it recognises the ‘immense pressure’ that businesses have been facing, and extended the self-assessment tax return deadline by an extra month for those who need it.

According to Sky News, HMRC said that anyone unable to file their returns by the 31 January deadline will not face a late filing penalty, as long as they do complete and file their returns by 28 February.

Late filing penalties are usually applied to all returns filed after January 31 deadline and cancelled if a customer has a reasonable excuse for filing late. HMRC said that it was becoming increasingly clear from the rate at which returns were being filed so far that some would not be able to file on time.

However, taxpayers who have not paid their bill by Sunday 31 January will be charged interest from Monday 1 February. But taxpayers who have finical difficulties and unable to pay their bill on time can apply online to spread their bill over 12 months, but they need to have filed their return before an arrangement can be made.

HMRC chief executive Jim Harra said: “We want to encourage as many people as possible to file their return on time, so we can calculate their tax bill and help them if they can’t pay it straight away.

“But we recognise the immense pressure that many people are facing in these unprecedented times and it has become increasingly clear that some people will not be able to file their return by January 31.”

There had been mounting pressure from the accountancy profession, as accountants working on business tax returns for clients said difficulties with remote working arrangements, increased workloads due to helping businesses to access Government COVID-19 supports, were significant obstacles to the work of preparing tax returns by the end of this month.

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