A customer said they were having an issue inputting their details
HMRC has explained a restriction that applies when filling in the-self assessment form. There are several reasons you may need to fill in a self-assessment tax return, such as if you are self employed or if you are a partner in a business.
A person contacted HMRC as they were registering for self assessment but were having an issue entering the name of their business. They said: “I entered appropriately but it’s not accepting the name even though it meets the parameters set.”
HRMC asked the person to share a screengrab of the form where they were having the problem, with their personal details covered. Having seen what the person had typed in, HMRC suggested the issue may be that they had used capital letters in the name.
They said to delete what they had written and then type it again without capital letters. The person said they had tried this but it still hadn’t worked. The tax department replied again pointing out another issue.
In the field in the form where the person was asked to describe what type of work they do, the person had inputted several terms, separated by a ‘;’ semi colon. HMRC told the person: “You can’t use semi colons for the types of work, please use commas.”
Amounts owed to HMRC
Some state pensioners will soon be due to pay back an amount to HMRC, as the Winter Fuel Payment has gone out. The payment is worth between £100 and £300 and is going out to most people of state pension age this winter.
Most payments will go out automatically in November and December. However, you will have to pay back the amount through HMRC if your income is more than £35,000.
This will be taken either by changing your tax code for the 2026/2027 tax year, or you will have to add the amount to your 2025/2026 self assessment tax return. People getting the payment should get a letter to tell them how much they will get and which bank account the amount will be paid into.
The DWP warned people to look out for scams to do with the payment. If you get a text message inviting you to apply for the payment, do not engage with it or click on any links.