In June 2025, HMRC will be sending out simple assessment letters to taxpayers who aren’t obligated to file full self-assessment tax returns – which might come as a surprise to some.
Here’s a summary of what taxpayers should know about simple assessments in 2025.
Who will get a simple assessment letter?
You are likely to receive a simple assessment letter from HMRC if you owe:
- Income Tax that isn’t automatically taken out of your income
- £3,000 or more to HMRC
- Tax on your State Pension
If you don’t have a PAYE code or the tax you owe can’t be collected by adjusting your tax code, then HMRC is also likely to send you a letter about this.
What is a simple assessment letter?
If you haven’t completed a full self-assessment tax return, but still owe tax, then HMRC will send you a letter regarding the tax you owe for the 2024–2025 tax year.
The simple assessment letter will cover all the key information, such as:
- Detailed calculations showing the amount of tax due
- The latest date you need to pay the tax by
- How you can pay the tax to HMRC
- What you should do if you disagree with HMRC’s calculations
For the 2024–2025 tax year, the deadline for paying any tax due will be 31st January 2026.
Why are more taxpayers receiving simple assessment letters?
While some people receive these letters every year, for many first-time recipients, they’ll seem to come out of the blue. This is because HMRC is sending letters to more and more people due to frozen Personal Allowances affecting their tax brackets.
The annual tax-free Personal Allowance has been stuck at £12,570 since 2021 and will remain the same until 2028. The basic old and new State Pensions may be below this level in 2025, but if you have the additional State Pension (which increased by 6.7% last year) or deferred your State Pension for an increased payment, this could be enough to exceed the allowance.
Additionally, if you owe tax on interest earned through a bank or building society account, HMRC could send you two simple assessment letters for the same year. If this happens, the second assessment will be based on the latest information and independent from the first.
Will you receive a simple assessment letter next year?
If the State Pension increases by 5% or more from the current level by April 2028, the basic new pension will exceed the Personal Allowance alone, pushing even more people into paying tax.
With inflation currently above 3% and earnings growth at around 5.5%, this pension increase could be reached during the 2026–2027 tax year, causing even more complications for HMRC.
You can learn more about simple assessments on the HMRC website. Should you need help with managing tax bills and communicating with HMRC, our accountants in Barnsley would be happy to offer assistance from the range of financial services we offer at gbac.
Call 01226 298 298 or email info@gbac.co.uk to benefit from our tax planning services!