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Small firms should be ‘given a break’ by HMRC and be allowed extra time in which to file their self-assessment tax returns.
That is the opinion of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), which has called on the Revenue to extend the SA deadline by two days for entrepreneurs who are struggling in the economic downturn.
The trade body has also asked the taxman ‘to be more understanding’ when small businesses send in their reasons for late filing. The Revenue should, for example, treat with sympathy owners who have been sick ‘during these testing times’.
‘HMRC must continue to be flexible with small firms, which are putting all their energy into surviving the downturn,’ the organisation insisted.
The FSB went on to demand that the Revenue ensures its website does not crash on deadline day as a result of a final rush of filed tax returns.
The body’s national chairman, John Wright, said: ‘The self-assessment tax return will be an unnecessary burden on our nation's small businesses if we see a system failure like last year’s.
‘We urge HMRC to ensure they have the right resources in place to deal with the influx.’
