HMRC fines warning for self-assessment households with £10,000 in savings | Personal Finance | Finance

Tax experts have issued a warning to self-assessment households who earned more than £10,000 from savings and investments. HMRC’s deadline is rapidly approaching for self-assessment and failing to file and pay in time online could land you with a fine and an eyewatering interest rate on any unpaid cash you owe, too.

Every year, His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs urges liable households to file a self-assessment tax return. While many workers will not need to do so if they only earn a regular wage via PAYE, many others will need to file a return before January 31, and it’s not just high earners. According to financial experts at investment and savings platform AJ Bell, those who earned more than £10,000 in savings and investments outside of an ISA in the past financial year also need to file a return.

There are other circumstances in which you need to self-assess, too, such as if you need to repay some of your Child Benefit, or you earned money on the side, such as from selling online.

Charlene Young, senior pensions and savings expert at AJ Bell, told the Express: “The festive period is now firmly in the rear-view mirror and millions of people are yet to file their self-assessment tax return for the 2024/25 tax year ahead of the 31 January deadline. Although nearly 20,000 filed a return on New Year’s Day, just under half of the expected 12 million tax returns are yet to be received by the taxman, according to the latest figures from HMRC.

“You must file a tax return for 2024/25 if any of the below applied during that tax year:

• You worked for yourself and earned more than £1,000

• You had to pay capital gains tax on something you sold or transferred for a profit

• You had to pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge and do not pay it through PAYE

• You were a partner in a business partnership

“Even if none the above apply to you, you might still have to file if you’ve received more than £10,000 from savings and investments in the tax year.”

Charlene added that a £150,000 rule for high earners is no longer in place, but those whose circumstances have changed may still need to file as well.

She added: “In previous years, taxpayers had to file if they earned over a certain threshold (£150,000 last year). Although that rule has now fallen away where a person’s only income source is taxed under PAYE, many people wrongly believe they don’t need to file if their circumstances simply change or they have no tax to pay. This is only true if you’ve told HMRC about your change in circumstances, or they’ve already confirmed to you directly that you don’t need to file.

“If HMRC wrote to you asking you to send a return but you believe you don’t need to, you’ll need to tell them as soon as possible. HMRC might not be aware of changes in your circumstances, so if you don’t let them know, you still risk a fine for not filing, even if you have no tax to pay.

“If you’re at all unsure, you can check whether you need to complete a tax return using this handy tool on the government website. And even if you don’t have to file, you might still need to tell HMRC directly about a side hustle or any other ways you top up your income.”

Those who are liable to file and pay tax need to do so by midnight on January 31, 2026, for the tax year April 6 2024 to April 5 2025, or they face a painful 7.75% interest rate on any unpaid money and a fine on top.

She added: “And finally, don’t forget to pay on time too. Whenever you filed (or plan to), make sure you’ve paid what you owe by midnight on 31 January 2026.

“If you don’t, you’ll start to accrue daily interest from 1 February. The annual interest rate charged by HMRC will sit at a whopping 7.75% from 9 January 2026, with further surcharges if the bill remains unpaid months later.

“If you’re having difficulty paying, you might be able to agree a payment plan online with HMRC as long as you owe £30,000 or less. You can also apply to reduce your payments on account for the next year if you think your earnings will be significantly lower than before.”