795,300 People Filed A Tax Return In Scotland Last Year

11th November 2021

More than 10.7 million customers completed their 2019/20 tax return by 31 January 2021 and 795,300 were from Scotland, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) can reveal.

The deadline to complete the 2020/21 Self Assessment tax return is 31 January 2022. Customers can complete it at any time up to the deadline but HMRC is encouraging them to complete it early to allow for more time to pay their tax bill or set up a payment plan.

Customers must complete a Self Assessment return if they:
earned more than £2,500 from renting out property
received, or their partner has received, Child Benefit and either of them had an annual income of more than £50,000
received more than £2,500 in other untaxed income, for example from tips or commission
are a self-employed sole trader whose annual turnover is more than £1,000
are an employee claiming expenses in excess of £2,500
have an annual income of more than £100,000
have earned income from abroad that they need to pay tax on

The 2020/21 tax return covers earnings and payments during the pandemic. Customers will need to declare if they received any grants or payments from the COVID-19 support schemes up to 5 April 2021 on their Self Assessment, as these are taxable, including:

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
other COVID-19 grants and support payments such as self-isolation payments, local authority grants and those for the Eat Out to Help Out scheme

The £500 one-off payment for working households receiving tax credits should not be reported in Self Assessment.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC's Director General for Customer Services, said:
"Customers can beat the rush and send us their tax returns now. They have until the 31 January deadline to pay, which means they have longer to set up a monthly payment plan if they need one.

"Visit GOV.UK and search ‘self assessment' to find out more."

Even if customers submit their completed tax return now, they do not have to pay any tax owed until 31 January 2022. HMRC recognises that some customers may be worrying about paying their tax bill. Customers can access support to help pay any tax owed on GOV.UK. Various payment options include:

paying through a customers' tax code (PAYE customers only)
Payment on Account
setting up an online monthly payment plan (self-serve Time to Pay)
pay by debit or corporate credit card
pay at a bank or building society

Visit GOV.UK for a full list of payment options and the eligibility criteria. Customers should contact HMRC if they have concerns about paying their tax bill.

breakdown of the estimated number of Self Assessment returns received from customers for 2019/20 filers in Scotland's local authority areas:


Aberdeen City 34,300

Aberdeenshire 54,800

Angus 18,000

Argyll and Bute 17,400

Scottish Borders 23,300

Clackmannanshire 5,800

West Dunbartonshire 7,600

Dumfries and Galloway 26,000

Dundee City 15,100

East Ayrshire 14,300

East Dunbartonshire 18,900

East Lothian 18,500

East Renfrewshire 17,500

City of Edinburgh 97,600

Falkirk 18,300

Fife 47,900

Glasgow City 68,000

Highland 45,900

Inverclyde 7,900

Midlothian 12,700

Moray 15,200

North Ayrshire 15,200

North Lanarkshire 34,300

Orkney Islands 5,600

Perth and Kinross 29,800

Renfrewshire 19,500

Shetland Islands 4,400

South Ayrshire 16,500

South Lanarkshire 42,000

Stirling 17,200

West Lothian 21,300

Na h-Eileanan Siar 4,500

TOTAL 795,300