can I claim my tax back??

[noble3r]

Can self employed people working offshore claim there tax back?

Alot of work collegues are on the pay roll (PAYE) and if they work a certain amount of days outside the uk they do indeed get all there tax back.

I went self employed as I was being charged 46% deductions from my monthly wage which seemed crazy. I was being charged from my agency an employees tax @ 11% on top of income tax and national insurance.

Although now I get paid gross can I suspect a huge bill at the end of the tax year or are self employed people able to claim tax back.

Thanks in advance

[Eric Mc]

Have you paid any tax yet as a Self Employed individual?

Are you a UK tax resident?

Are you properly Self Employed?

Lots of factors to consider.

[noble3r]

uk resident, fully self employed with accountant who has no offshore experience, haven't paid any tax as of yet.

[Eric Mc]

If you haven't paid any tax - then you are not going to get any tax back

The question you are really asking is, am I liable to UK tax on my Self Employed earnings. That will be entirely based on whether you are a UK tax resident or not.

You need to get your accountant on the case pretty quickly. If you do owe tax for the year 2006/07 it will be payable in full on 31 January 2008. In addition, you might also have to make a Payment on Account for 2007/08 on 31 January 2008.

For example, if your tax and Class 4 National Insurance liability comes to £10,000, then you need to pay £10,000 on 31 January 2008 plus the 1st 2007/08 Payment on Account. This will be for £5,000, making the total payable on 31 January £15,000.

You would also have to make a 2nd Payment on Account for 2007/08 of £5,000 on 31 July 2008.

[noble3r]

Thanks for advice,

I am a uk tax resident. This seems a grey area as some accountants can't even answer my query.

[Eric Mc]

It's not that grey - but it is rather complex. Whether you are UK tax resident depends on a number of factors:

where your permanent home is
how often you go abroad
how often you return
how long you stay in the UK when you return
whether you own residential property in the UK.

[Biggles111]

I had this problem originally; I was a non resident contractor carrying out consulting work in the Middle East for a UK client. There is no problem at all in being non resident and self employed, and yes you will be able to claim your tax back if you meet the non-resident criteria. In summary these are that:
a) the period covered must include at least one complete tax year
b) you must be in the UK for an average of no more than 90 days per year
c) you may not be in the UK for more than 180 days total in any one year (but note the point above)
Travel days to and from the UK are treated as 'outside' the UK.

Non resident tax is complex and is not something that all accountants are up to speed on. The cost of getting it wrong is high! I use one that specialises in this field - if you need a contact PM me and I'll copy you who I use.