Services
Self Assessment & personal tax, handled properly.
Personal tax accountants and Chartered Tax Advisors who gather the information for your Self Assessment tax return, file it on time, and use what we learn to optimise your taxes and plan the year ahead.
Returns and planning.
A tax return reports decisions already made, so we also talk to you before those decisions are taken.
Whether your affairs are straightforward or complex, our Self Assessment accountants prepare and file your tax return accurately and on time, deal with HMRC on your behalf, remind you of every payment, and give you a year-end planner so reliefs and allowances are used before they lapse on 5 April.
We identify the reliefs, claims and allowances you are entitled to and, where it helps, restructure how income and assets are held, to keep your tax exposure as low as the law allows.
Because we are Chartered Tax Advisors as well as accountants, personal tax planning is built in rather than sold separately. Compliance is billed as a fixed monthly subscription, agreed upfront.
Our personal tax services.
Everything needed to keep your personal tax right and on time.
Self Assessment tax returns
Your return prepared and filed online, with payments on account and the balancing payment worked out and checked.
The 31 January deadline02Employment income
Salary, bonuses and benefits in kind, plus the work expenses and professional fees you are entitled to claim.
Work expenses check03Property income & gains
Rental profits, the finance cost restriction and 60-day capital gains tax reporting on UK residential property.
Landlords04Investment income & gains
Interest, dividends and gains on shares, funds and cryptoassets, with the allowances used in the right order.
Crypto tax05Residency & international tax
Your UK residence status, foreign income and gains, overseas pensions and property, and relief for tax paid abroad.
International tax06Share schemes
EMI, CSOP, SAYE, Share Incentive Plans and unapproved options, with the tax at grant, exercise and sale.
Share schemes07Reliefs, claims & allowances
Pension contributions and Gift Aid (which can also reduce the High Income Child Benefit Charge), EIS, SEIS and VCT relief, and the marriage allowance.
Higher rate pension relief08Personal tax planning
A planner before 5 April so allowances are used rather than lost, and advice on restructuring where it lowers your tax.
High earners09HMRC correspondence & reminders
We deal with HMRC for you as your authorised agent, and remind you before 31 January and 31 July with the amounts due.
HMRC enquiries2026/27 figures that shape the year.
Source: AP Tax Advisors 2026/27 tax rates card, reviewed against GOV.UK on 2 August 2026. England, Wales & NI. Childcare figures: GOV.UK, England.
What is a Self Assessment tax return?
Self Assessment is the system HMRC uses to collect income tax that isn't taken automatically through PAYE. Each year you report your income and capital gains for the tax year that runs from 6 April to 5 April, work out the tax due, and pay it.
If you are employed with no other income, you usually won't need one. You are likely to need one if you are self-employed, a landlord, a company director taking dividends, have capital gains to report, are caught by the High Income Child Benefit Charge, or have foreign income. A personal tax accountant takes the whole process off your hands and makes sure nothing is missed or over-reported.
When is Self Assessment due?
- 5 October: register for Self Assessment if you have new income to report for the tax year just ended
- 31 October: deadline for a paper tax return
- 31 January: online tax return deadline, and payment of the balance due plus any first payment on account
- 31 July: second payment on account
For the 2025/26 tax year, that means registering by 5 October 2026 and filing and paying by 31 January 2027. We track these dates for you and send reminders with the exact amounts.
Payments on account, explained.
HMRC asks for two advance payments towards next year's bill when:
- your last Self Assessment bill was £1,000 or more, and
- 80% or less of your tax was collected at source, for example through PAYE
Each payment is half of last year's liability, due on 31 January and 31 July.
- They are compulsory when those conditions are met.
- They can be reduced if your income is falling.
- Reduce them too far and HMRC charges interest on the shortfall, so it is a decision worth taking with your accountant.
When does Making Tax Digital for Income Tax start?
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to sole traders and landlords based on their qualifying income from self-employment and property:
- From 6 April 2026: income over £50,000 in 2024/25
- From 6 April 2027: income over £30,000 in 2025/26
- From 6 April 2028: income over £20,000 in 2026/27
Those in scope must:
- keep digital records in compatible software
- send HMRC quarterly updates
- file a final tax return after the year end
We confirm whether you are in scope, set up the software, and handle the quarterly updates and year-end submission for you.
Read: Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: who is in, and when →
Why use a personal tax advisor?
A personal tax advisor looks beyond the return to minimise your tax exposure legitimately. We:
- identify the reliefs and allowances you are entitled to, such as pension relief, Gift Aid and the marriage allowance
- make the claims you may have missed, including for earlier years where the time limit allows
- plan around the thresholds you are close to: the £100,000 line where the 62% band begins and free childcare is lost, the Child Benefit charge and the pension taper
- restructure how income and assets are held, for example between spouses or through a company, where it helps and the rules allow
That means fewer surprises in January, and more of what you earn kept legitimately.
How our engagement works.
First conversation
A short call or meeting about your income, what has changed this year and any deadlines coming up. We tell you whether you need a return and what we would do.
Fixed fee and set-up
We confirm the work and the fixed monthly fee in writing. Once you sign the engagement letter and we complete our identity and anti-money laundering checks, we register as your agent with HMRC.
Your tax return
We send a checklist for your situation, gather the figures, prepare your return and send it for your approval before filing, with the tax due and the dates to pay.
Planning through the year
We remind you before each payment, review your position before 5 April, and look at reliefs, claims and changes in your circumstances so next year's tax is planned in advance.
Personal Tax, answered.
Do I need to file?
You are likely to need one if you:
- are self-employed with gross income over £1,000
- have rental income over £2,500 after expenses, or £10,000 before expenses
- have untaxed income such as tips or commission over £2,500
- have capital gains to report, including on property
- receive Child Benefit and the higher earner in your household has adjusted net income over £60,000 (this can sometimes be paid through your tax code instead)
- have foreign income, or live abroad with UK income
- receive dividends over £10,000 (smaller amounts above the £500 allowance can often be collected through your tax code)
If you are unsure, we will confirm your position in the initial consultation.
It is how HMRC collects income tax that is not taken automatically through PAYE. You report your income and gains for the tax year from 6 April to 5 April, work out the tax due, and pay it by 31 January after the year ends.
Tell HMRC by 5 October after the tax year in which the income arose. For 2025/26 income, that means by 5 October 2026. You will receive a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR). As your agent, we can handle the registration for you.
Deadlines and payments
For the 2025/26 tax year:
- 5 October 2026: register if you are new to Self Assessment
- 31 October 2026: paper returns
- 31 January 2027: online returns, and payment of the balance plus any first payment on account
- 31 July 2027: second payment on account
Yes, if your last Self Assessment bill was £1,000 or more and 80% or less of your tax was collected at source. You can ask HMRC to reduce the payments if you expect your income to fall, but if you reduce them too far you will pay interest on the shortfall.
For 2025/26 returns, there is an automatic £100 penalty, daily penalties after three months, and further penalties at six and twelve months. Paying late adds 5% penalties at 30 days, six months and twelve months, plus interest. If you are in Making Tax Digital, a points-based system replaces these from the year you join. We send reminders, and can appeal penalties where you have a reasonable excuse.
Often, yes. HMRC's Time to Pay arrangements let you spread a bill you cannot pay in full. Self Assessment debts of up to £30,000 can often be set up online once your return is filed; larger amounts need a call to HMRC. Interest still runs, but an agreed plan can stop late payment penalties.
It started on 6 April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 in 2024/25. The threshold falls to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028, based on income two years earlier.
Working with us
Typically your P60 or payslips and any P11D, bank interest and dividend statements, rental income and expenses, details of anything you sold, and pension or charitable contributions. We send a checklist tailored to you, so nothing is missed.
Current-year compliance is a fixed monthly subscription, prorated if you join mid-year, so the cost is spread and known in advance. Earlier years are a one-off fixed fee, agreed before we start.
Yes. We prepare and file overdue returns for earlier years on a one-off fixed fee, work out any tax, interest and penalties, and appeal the penalties where you have a reasonable excuse. If income was never declared, we can make a voluntary disclosure to HMRC for you.
Related pages.
Google review
“I have received excellent personal and corporate tax support from AP Tax Advisors. The advice is clear, thorough, and tailored to my circumstances. Everything is explained carefully, and I feel confident knowing my tax affairs are being handled properly and proactively.”
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