Thousands of taxpayers chose to spend part of their Christmas break tackling their tax affairs, with more than 4,600 people filing their Self Assessment returns on Christmas Day alone, new figures show.
Data released by HM Revenue and Customs reveals that 37,435 people submitted their returns between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, suggesting that for a growing number of taxpayers, festive filing is becoming a seasonal habit.
Christmas Eve proved the busiest of the three days, with 22,350 returns filed. The peak hour was between 11am and noon, when 3,159 customers hit submit. On Christmas Day itself, 4,606 people completed their returns, with the busiest hour falling between 1pm and 2pm. Boxing Day saw a further 10,479 returns filed, peaking mid-afternoon.
While many opted to deal with tax rather than turkey, HMRC found attitudes were mixed when it spoke to shoppers at Manchester’s Christmas markets, where most said they would rather focus on festive food than finances.
With just one month to go until the 31 January filing deadline, HMRC is urging those who have yet to complete their return to get started as soon as possible.
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