Free checklist
Self Assessment checklist for tradespeople
Shaun Holmes
A printable list for the 2025 to 2026 tax year, due 31 January 2027. I've spent over 20 years in UK construction, and I still want the dates on one sheet before January.
Get the checklist
Sign up for the weekly email and the PDF is yours to download on the next screen. One email a week. Unsubscribe any time. This is general information, not advice for your own return.
What is on the sheet
Two pages, made to print and tick. The rules were read from GOV.UK on 17 October 2026. None of the links are affiliate links. If a line does not match your year, leave it and use the HMRC page, or ask an accountant.
The dates
The 5 October registration date if this return is new to you, the paper date, 31 January 2027, the 30 December tax-code route, and the two payments on account.
Before you open the return
Sign-in, where the UTR lives, cash basis or traditional accounting, and whether you are using the £1,000 trading allowance.
Income
What you took in from 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026, with pay before a CIS deduction kept separate from the deduction.
CIS statements
Every payment and deduction statement, and the total to enter as CIS deductions. A missing statement stays a gap.
Costs, including the van
Receipts, the business share of a mixed cost, and either flat mileage or actual costs for a van, not both.
What you have already paid
Payments on account from your statement, the £1,000 and 80% tests, and the claim to reduce a payment if the next bill will be smaller.
The dates on the sheet
HMRC's deadlines page (opens in a new tab) says the last tax year started on 6 April 2025 and ended on 5 April 2026. An online return must be in by 11:59pm on 31 January 2027, and the tax you owe is due then too. A paper return must be received by 11:59pm on 31 October 2026. If you have not sent a return before, or you did not need one for 2024 to 2025, you tell HMRC by 5 October 2026.
Payments on account, where they apply, are due by midnight on 31 January and midnight on 31 July. How they are worked out is in the payments on account guide. The filing date itself is in the 31 January 2027 guide. CIS money paid back through the return, or through a limited company, is in the CIS tax refund guide.
Get the checklist
The printable Self Assessment list comes with the weekly email. Unsubscribe any time.
Common questions
Is the checklist tax advice?
No. It is general information taken from GOV.UK pages read on 17 October 2026. The figures on your return are yours. If the year includes something unusual, ask an accountant or use the HMRC page.
How do I get the PDF?
Sign up for the weekly email on this page. The download appears once the signup is accepted. There is no separate email just for the PDF. If a confirmation for the weekly email arrives, open it. Check junk if it is not in your inbox.
Which tax year is the list for?
The 2025 to 2026 tax year, from 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026. HMRC's deadlines page says the online return and the tax you owe are due by 11:59pm on 31 January 2027.
Does this cover a limited company?
The dates are Self Assessment. A company's Corporation Tax is a different return. The CIS refund guide sets out the limited-company route for CIS deductions. If you also file your own Self Assessment, the list is for that return.