Self Assessment/Simple Assessment

[Seasider]

I have done self assessment for decades. In the last few years I have started getting Simple Assessment letters saying I owe tax on savings interest. Each year I have had to call up HMRC and hang on for an hour or more to get the simple assessment cancelled. Last year they said that they had cancelled it for good so I should not get any more Simple Assessments but as you may guess I got one again for 2022/3. When I called up HMRC this time I was told that I should not have got it but this person could not do anything to clear it off my account and they could not get hold of the other department which might be able to do it. Someone will call me.

In the past I called the simple assessment people and they had to put me through to the self assessment people to cancel the simple assessment. This year I went straight to the self assessment people with the result I am left hanging in limbo. I may have to write a letter (though I am confused as to who I should write to and why I can't seem to get them to stop sending me the simple assessments).

It may be that all I wanted to do was to vent some frustration but if anyone has had a similar experience and has any suggestions then please let me know.

[pochisoldi]

Do SA online, and ignore the simple assessment request?
Rinse, repeat, for a couple of years and as long as the difference between tax paid and tax due is tending towards zero, you'll probably see the relevant markers get automagically get removed from your "HMRC account".

HMRC don't want people in SA unless they need to be in, but I get the impression that the weeding out is done by computers.

[DrFfybes]

After years of SA where I owed nothing, they finally wrote to me saying I didn't need to do one any more.

Later that year I started a DB pension, which they taxed, so I had to do one as I had "assumed income" or some similar phrase of £8kpa. I tried to phone them but gave up after a few days and did SA online.

For you it might be simpler just to send an SA in online showing nothing to pay - certainly quicker than trying to get through on the phone.

Paul

[BullDog]

Eventually I think this is going to reduce significantly. For the first time this year, my HMRC tax account had all the numbers for income and savings already entered and correct. As a result, it took just a few minutes to check the numbers and submit my 2022/23 self assessment on line. There's going to be people sucked into paying tax because of interest rates increasing and savings allowance being exceeded this year. I think tax codes will be adjusted automatically by the system as a result and tax on savings gathered.

[Seasider]

Thanks for the replies.
I do have other income so I need to do self assessment anyway and the tax I pay under that exceeds what is due under Simple Assessment. The problem I have is that Simple Assessment seems to ignore the self assessment figures completely and pretend that I owe whatever it is even though I have already paid more than that in income tax under self assessment. Of course I have not dared let it run until January 31 for fear they will charge interest and penalties on the tax they say I haven't paid.
I just do not understand why they still send me Simple Assessments when they know I am returning that income under self assessment. OK they are two different bits of HMRC but you would think they could talk to each other.

[DrFfybes]

OK they are two different bits of HMRC but you would think they could talk to each other.

Anyone know the best way to get Merlot out of a keyboard?

[Seasider]

So I got the call. This year's simple assessment has been cancelled and so hopefully has next year's. After that there is no guarantee that I won't get another one. It seems the problem is that I do not pay any tax through PAYE.