First payment on account for 2023-24

Hi All I like some of you on here, have to do a self assessment for child benefit. for 21/22 my bill tax bill was £1,879. I have done my calculation for 22/23, and the bill including first payment on account is £6,880? I checked my previous payment, and I always pay in full before 31st January. I'm not self employed, and 100% of my salary goes through PAYE. I've tried to call the HMRC helpdesk, but for every reason I give the bot, it refers me to the help pages on the website Thanks for any advice you can give me?

Hi Jayne Hearts,
While you can't defer your payments on account, we may be able to offer alternative ways to pay, including payment plans, if you're finding it difficult to pay by the due date.
Contact our Debt Management team on 0300 200 3820 to discuss your options.
Thank you. 

Unfortunately I find I will have to set up a payment plan. I can only prepay so much before the end of the month but will be able to pay more after the 3rd. My question is should I add the two payments together and hope it won't be debited until after the third and so reduce the monthly amount in one swoop or should I debit twice and again hope the amount will reduce. I hope that makes sense.

My wife sent her paper tax return to HMRC on 19 October 2023. She has heard nothing from them - no Tax Assessment, no Statement of Account, and no notice to pay. The deadline for paying on account is 31 January 2024. What amount should she be paying, in the absence of any information from HMRC?

Hi Chopper1867,
We would need to review the calculation to check why the balance is higher than expected.
If you have not yet submitted the tax return we would advise you double check the figures declared are correct and if so submit the tax return.
If you allow 3 working days to process to HMRC records and contact us to review.
You can webchat as well as calling:
Self Assessment: general enquiries
Thank you. 

Hi Roger Main,

If still your wife has not received a calculation then she will need to contact our Self Assessment team to check on the submitted tax return.

Self Assessment: general enquiries

She can also calculate or estimate the balance due and make the payment.

Estimate your Income Tax for a previous tax year

Thank you.

Hi Denise Lada,
You can set up a payment plan online at If you cannot pay your tax bill on time .
If not able to set up online you will need to contact our helpline 0300 200 3822 Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm.
Thank you.

Dear HMRC, I have a similar issue to the people above. I filled my tax return yesterday. I was hoping to see a deduction of the two instalments I paid on Jan 2023 and Jul 2023 in the final calculation. These payments didn't show up in the final break down so I thought they would be deducted at some point from the total balance. Yesterday and today My SA summary said " I have no tax to pay". Obviously I know this is wrong so after waiting all day to see if the system updated (I know it can take up to 72 hours) I decided to pay the full amount due, which also included a first payment for 2023-2024. Now my question is, would my pre-paid instalments be refunded automatically or would I have to claim this refund? And if so, should I wait a few days until the system updates so all the transactions are clear? Thank you,

Hi Marco_Plaza,
The calculation does not take into account the payments made direct by you and this will update once the tax return flows on to the system.
A refund will be issued automatically if you completed the repayment section on the return.
If not, you will need to request it be issued.
Thank you. 

Dear HMRC, After waiting for more than one hour and being cut off on the phone, I am writing to get some replies. I have paid my tax for 2022-2023, I am expected to pay half of the 2022-2023 tax for the first 6 months of 2023-2024. Why do I have to do this? Now I received a letter to say I am late for paying for this and there is interest generated by this. I am not fully aware of I needed to pay tax for 2023-2024.Could you explain to me why this is happening? I have never come cross this in previous tax years. Many thanks,

Hi Yun Li,
Please refer to guidance here:
Understand your Self Assessment tax bill
Thank you. 

Dear HMRC, I am writing to seek clarification on how to adjust my tax payments for the upcoming year, taking into account an overpayment from the last year. For the previous tax year, my total tax liability was £3,000. However, I made two payments on account amounting to £6,000 (£4,500 by 31 January and £1,500 by 31 July, which I have already paid). This results in an overpayment of £3,000 on my account. My tax liability for this year is £5,000. I am trying to understand how to account for the £3,000 overpayment in calculating my payments on account for the next tax year (2024/25). Specifically, I am unsure which of the following options is correct for calculating my payments due on 31 January 2025 and 31 July 2025: Option A) Deduct the overpayment from this year's liability before calculating the payments on account, resulting in two payments based on a reduced liability of £3,000. Example: £5,000 (tax liability) - £3,000 (advancement)= £2,000*2 = £4,000 which would result in £3,000 by 31/01/2025 and £1,000 by 31/07/2025 Option B) Calculate the payments on account based on the full liability of £5,000 for this year, and then deduct the overpayment from the total amount due for the year. Example: £5,000*2=£10,000 - £3,000 (advancement) = £7,000 which would result in £5,250 by 31/01/2025 and £3,500 by 31/07/2025 Could you please advise on the correct approach to take in this situation? Thank you for your assistance.

Hi,

When you submit your 2023 to 2024 Self Assessment return you will received a calculation showing the payments on account becoming due 31 January 2025 and 31 July 2025. Once the retun has been filed any previous payments made will be taken into account on your statement and deducted from any payments becoming due.

Thank you. 

Hi HMRC Admin 19, thank you for your reply, however I would appreciate it if I could just understand the principle when the overpayment deduction is applied, possibly without accessing the Self Assessment page. Would you be able to advise? I have reviewed the "Understand your Self Assessment tax bill" guidance, but unfortunately, it does not specify this particular step. Just to clarify Should I: A) Double my income tax from the previous year and then subtract the overpayment, to find out what tax I owe or B) Subtract the overpayment from my current income tax and then double the result? Any advice or clarity on this matter would be greatly appreciated. I am hoping to ensure that I understand the process correctly and complete my tax assessment accurately. Thank you for your time and assistance.

Hi Alex,
When your tax return for 2023/24 is processed the payments on account previously made will be allocated against any payments becoming due 31 January 2025, which will be the balancing payment due for 2023/24 plus any payments on account set up for 2024/25. 
Thank you.