Kit PetersTAX DEADLINE: What self-employed people across Swansea Bay need to know before 31 July
Self-employed people and landlords across Swansea Bay and Carmarthenshire have a month to get ready for the next tax deadline.
The second “payment on account” for the 2025-26 tax year is due by midnight on 31 July, HM Revenue and Customs has reminded taxpayers.
Payments on account are advance payments towards a Self Assessment tax bill, split into two instalments due on 31 January and 31 July. Each is half of the tax owed the previous year.
For many self-employed tradespeople, freelancers and small landlords across the region, it is one of two key dates in the tax calendar.
HMRC says anyone who expects to struggle can set up a monthly or weekly payment plan to spread the cost, with anything already paid counted towards the next bill.
The payments can be made through the HMRC app, on GOV.UK, or by a range of other methods listed on the government website.
Not everyone has to make them. Taxpayers are exempt if the tax they owed last year was under £1,000, or if they paid more than 80% of what they owed outside Self Assessment — for example through their tax code.
Anyone who expects their bill to be lower than last year can also ask HMRC to reduce their payments on account.
Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s chief customer officer, said help was available for every taxpayer, from paying instantly through the app to spreading the cost through a payment plan.
She urged people to search “Pay your Self Assessment tax bill” on GOV.UK to find the option that suits them.
The reminder comes as the way self-employed people report their tax continues to change. Sole traders and landlords with annual turnover above £50,000 must now use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, submitting quarterly updates to HMRC, with the first deadline for the 2026-27 year on 7 August.
The shift — which SBN reported earlier this year as the biggest shake-up to tax returns in a generation — means thousands of local self-employed people will need compatible software and to be signed up.
From mid-July, HMRC says around 300,000 taxpayers liable for the High Income Child Benefit Charge will have their Child Benefit details filled in automatically on their online return, to make it easier to get right.
The deadline for filing the 2025-26 return in full, and paying any remaining tax, is 31 January 2027. HMRC says filing early means people know what they owe sooner.
There is also a warning to stay alert to fraud. Criminals often impersonate HMRC to steal money or personal details, and the tax office urges people never to click links in unexpected messages or share their sign-in details, and to check GOV.UK if in doubt.
Related stories from Swansea Bay News
‘Death of the traditional tax return’ as biggest shake-up in 30 years hits South Wales
How Making Tax Digital is changing tax returns for the self-employed.
Swansea accountancy firm creates 20 new jobs as it becomes an MTD hub
Local support for businesses navigating the new digital tax rules.
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