{"id":256,"date":"2025-06-20T15:03:27","date_gmt":"2025-06-20T15:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tax2u.co.uk\/blog\/?p=256"},"modified":"2025-09-06T11:29:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T11:29:08","slug":"your-step-by-step-guide-to-filing-the-24-25-self-assessment-tax-return-self-employed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tax2u.co.uk\/blog\/2025\/06\/20\/your-step-by-step-guide-to-filing-the-24-25-self-assessment-tax-return-self-employed\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing the 24\/25 Self Assessment Tax Return (Self-Employed)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Filing your Self Assessment Tax Return doesn&#8217;t have to be stressful. In this guide, we&#8217;ll walk you through the full process of submitting your 2024\/25 return if you&#8217;re self-employed \u2014 including registration, tracking income, claiming expenses, and avoiding common errors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How to complete the 24\/25 Self Assessment Tax Return - SELF EMPLOYED\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J-Wru2sVM0Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Registering for Self Assessment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If this is your first time filing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>You must register by&nbsp;<strong>5th October 2025<\/strong>&nbsp;following the end of the tax year.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You\u2019ll need:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>National Insurance number<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Business details (trading name, start date)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Government Gateway ID (create one if you haven\u2019t)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tax2u.co.uk\/utr\/utr-number\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.tax2u.co.uk\/utr\/utr-number\">Register for UTR number<\/a> to start Self Assessment with Tax2U <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Keep Accurate Records<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You must keep records of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Income (invoices, receipts, bank statements)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Allowable expenses (see below)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mileage logs or travel records<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tax2U Tip:<\/strong>&nbsp;Keep records for&nbsp;<strong>at least 5 years<\/strong>&nbsp;after the 31st January submission deadline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 3: Claim Your Allowable Expenses<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reduce your tax bill by deducting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Home office use<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Work-related travel<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tools and equipment<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Business insurance<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Phone and internet<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Accountant or software fees<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 4: Complete the Return Online<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once you receive your UTR number:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Select one of the Tax2U services and create an account<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Select the year for \u2018Self Assessment\u2019 \u2192 \u2018File return\u2019<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Follow each section carefully:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Income summary<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Expenses claimed<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tax already paid (e.g. CIS deductions)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 5: Submit and Pay<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Deadline:&nbsp;<strong>31 January 2026<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Payment methods: Bank transfer, card, Direct Debit<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You\u2019ll receive a confirmation email upon submission<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Completing your return early means:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>No deadline panic<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>More time to budget for tax<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Avoiding interest or penalties<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Want us to do it for you?&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tax2u.co.uk\/tax-return\/self-assessment\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.tax2u.co.uk\/tax-return\/self-assessment\">Start your Self Assessment with Tax2U<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Filing your Self Assessment Tax Return doesn&#8217;t have to be stressful. In this guide, we&#8217;ll&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[243,244],"class_list":["post-256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-self-assessment-income-tax","tag-self-assessment","tag-tax-return"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing the 24\/25 Self Assessment Tax Return (Self-Employed) - Tax2u<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tax2u.co.uk\/blog\/2025\/06\/20\/your-step-by-step-guide-to-filing-the-24-25-self-assessment-tax-return-self-employed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Your Step-by-Step Guide to Filing the 24\/25 Self Assessment Tax Return (Self-Employed) - Tax2u\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Filing your Self Assessment Tax Return doesn&#8217;t have to be stressful. 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