Penalties for late payment and interest harmonisation
Find out about the new late payment penalties and interest charges.
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The changes now apply to VAT customers for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.
For Income Tax Self-Assessment (ITSA) customers, the changes will apply as customers become mandated to Making Tax Digital (MTD). This means:
- for businesses, self-employed individuals and landlords with income over £50,000 per year from the tax year beginning 6 April 2026
- for businesses, self-employed individuals and landlords with income over £30,000 per year from the tax year beginning 6 April 2027
For all other ITSA customers outside the scope of MTD, the changes will apply after the introduction for MTD taxpayers.
Relevant information and guidance about the changes will be made available in a less technical form for taxpayers and those who represent them before their introduction.
For more information, read:
- the interest harmonisation and penalties for late payment and late submission tax information and impact note
- research on exploring communication needs of customers for the implementation of changes to late payment and late submission penalties
Updates to this page
Published 3 March 2021Last updated 17 November 2023 + show all updates
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Updated the dates for when the changes will apply for Income Tax Self-Assessment customers.
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The new late submission penalties have been delayed. They will now begin on 1 January 2023.
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The start date for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self-Assessment has been postponed until April 2024.
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We have updated the section 'where HMRC might not assess a late payment penalty' with guidance on how we assess a first penalty and any tax outstanding.
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First published.