From 19 October, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will start charging penalties for all CIS returns not received by the due date, namely the 19th of every month. This includes returns due from the start of the new scheme between May and September, including nil returns.

After this date, any return not received from contractors by the due date will be liable to a fixed penalty of £100 and a further penalty for every additional month that the return remains outstanding.

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Doug Tweddle, HMRC Senior Responsible Officer for the CIS Reform Programme, said: "It's important that contractors operating the CIS scheme make sure that all their outstanding returns are sent in by 19 October, to avoid a penalty. We would obviously prefer not to have to issue penalties, but having had 6 months to get into the routine of sending returns in by the 19th of each month, contractors will now face penalties if they fail to do so.

"It's important to remember that nil returns must be submitted too - to make life easier, this can be done with one phone call.

"It's not too late for contractors to get their filing obligations up to date and avoid penalties, but they must act now."

(CL)