Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 section 711

Right to make a return

Section 711 gives individuals whose income is taxed through PAYE the right to request a self-assessment tax return from HMRC.

• Anyone who has had PAYE deductions or repayments made on their income during a tax year can ask HMRC to issue them with a self-assessment tax return for that year.
• The request is made by giving formal notice to an officer of HMRC.
• There is a strict deadline: the request must be made no later than three years after the 31st of October following the end of the relevant tax year.
• This right was preserved in the legislation to ensure that PAYE taxpayers retain an explicit right to submit a tax return, pending any future introduction of a general right for all taxpayers to do so.