I have just passed The Knowledge – How do I register for tax?

Before I begin, let me get something out of the way…

Congratulations on passing The Knowledge!

It’s not an exciting subject (for most people!) but now that you have completed The Knowledge you need to start thinking about tax. If you have never been self-employed before you might be wondering what you need to do about tax and how you register with HMRC (formerly known as Inland Revenue).

We are aware that this is one of the last things a new driver wants to spend time researching and thinking about (and rightly so!), so to help new drivers out we have written up a step-by-step guide telling you exactly what you need to do next.

Before we start please know that if anything is not clear, or if you have any other questions, you can pick up the phone and speak to one of our friendly team totally free of charge. We will be more than happy to help and can answer any questions that you might have.

Before you begin

You will need the following information to hand:

• The date you first started working in the cab.
• Your National Insurance Number.
• Your Full name and date of birth.
• Your current contact details.

Step 1 – Create a Government Gateway Account

Firstly you need to create a Government Gateway Account. To do that follow the steps below.

1. Visit this link: https://online.hmrc.gov.uk/registration/newbusiness/introduction
2. Select the option which says “I want to tell HMRC that I am in business and need to register for a new tax or tell HMRC that the company is now active” and click next.
3. Click “next” again and then click “next” again. You should reach a screen titled asking you whether or not you have a Government Gateway account. Click “Create an Account for me.”
4. Follow the instructions and Input your name & email.
5. Create a password.

You should now be issued with a Government Gateway User ID on a page (see image below).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Ensure you make a note of your User ID now as it will disappear when you click next.

Step 2: Register for Self Assessment

Now that you have a Government Gateway Account you can register for Self Assessment (this basically means you are telling the Government that you are self employed).

1. Click next – You will now be asked to sign into your Government gateway account (the one you created in Step 1).

1. Now Click “Add a tax, duty or scheme” & Select “Individual or Sole trader”.You will now be back to a page you will have seen before (an HMRC inefficiency).
2. Like before select “I want to tell HMRC that I am in business and need to register for a new tax or tell HMRC that the company is now active” and click next.
3. Click the checkbox next to Self Assessment.
4. Click Next.
5. Select “Self-employed/sole trader/sole proprietor” and click next.
6. Insert the date that you began to work as Self employed, click next.
7. Now you will be asked to put in your personal details, complete this form and at the end you will be asked to submit.

Step 3: Wait for your UTR number to arrive.

Once you have submitted the form you are done (for today). You now need to wait for HMRC to send you a letter containing your 10 digit Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR).

Once you have received your UTR please give us a call on 0207 837 8535 and we will explain what to do next.

As we mentioned above, if you have any problems or if anything isn’t clear please feel free to give us a call and one of the team will be glad to help you out.

Joe

Accountant

Joseph Cox is an ACCA Chartered Accountant whose dad is a London Taxi Driver. He has been working with Cab Drivers for a number of years. If you have any questions about this blog post please give the office a call and he

‍