Back dated self assessment

A student has recently registered a side hustle from 6th April 2023. He's been asked to submit a return for tax year 2022-23 with a deadline of 3 months to submit it. Why would he be asked to submit for the year before he registered. Should he just fill in a nil return? Is there a risk of a fine for late submission or does the 3 month deadline on the letter over ride that?

Hi Helen,
If you do not meet the critera for the 2022/23 tax year then the tax return can be cancelled.
You can check if you meet criteria here:
Check if you need to send a Self Assessment tax return
Thank you.