Self-assessment taxpayers will not be charged the initial 5% late payment penalty if they pay their tax or make a time-to-pay arrangement by 1 April, HMRC has announced.
Interest will continue to accrue, however. The payment deadline was 31 January so interest will be charged from 1 February on outstanding amounts. The deadline remains the same but this year, because of the impact of Covid-19, HMRC is giving taxpayers more time to pay or set up a payment plan. So far, according to HMRC, more than 97,260 taxpayers have set up a self-serve time-to-pay arrangement online, totalling more than £367m.
Payment plans or payments in full must be in place by midnight on 1 April to avoid a late payment penalty.