Men outperform women in completing tax returns on time

Updated

Men are more likely than women to complete their tax return on time, figures from the taxman show.

In 2014-15, for every 10,000 tax returns submitted by men, 232 were late, whereas for women, the rate was slightly higher, with 235 late tax returns for every 10,000 submitted, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said.

It marked the second year in a row men were more likely than women to get their returns in on time.

Older people are also more likely than younger ones to get their returns in on time, with only 104 per 10,000 tax returns filed by over-65s being late, compared with 833 for every 10,000 sent in by 18 to 20-year-olds.

Across the UK, taxpayers in Northern Ireland are the most likely to file on time, with 178 returns for every 10,000 being late, compared with 205 per 10,000 in Wales, and 233 late returns for every 10,000 in both Scotland and England.

Looking across England, Londoners are the most likely to file their returns late, while those in the South West are the least likely to miss the January 31 deadline for filing self-assessment returns.

Taxpayers in London filed 310 returns late for every 10,000 while those in the South West filed 184 returns late for every 10,000.

People working in agriculture, fishing and forestry are the least likely to file a late return, with just 62 in every 10,000 returns being late. Accountants and lawyers are the next least likely to file a late return, with 106 late returns per 10,000.

Those working in administration and support services are the most likely to file a late return, with 296 returns per 10,000 being late.

The deadline for sending 2015-16 self-assessment tax returns online to HMRC, and paying any tax owed, is January 31 2017.

Penalties for late tax returns include an initial £100 fixed penalty, which applies even if there is no tax to pay, or if the tax due is paid on time.

Ruth Owen, HMRC director general of customer service, said: "It's very encouraging to see that in every aspect of our analysis we saw huge reductions in the number of tax returns being sent in late last year."

She continued: "The deadline is now less than three weeks away, if you still need to complete a return our advice is don't leave it until it's too late. Our online service has lots of helpful advice and handy tips to help make submitting your tax return as easy and stress free as possible."


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