SAM132001 - Statements: transactions on statements: introduction

General

Each taxpayer with an SA liability is issued periodically with a statement known as the ‘Self Assessment Statement’ (up to June 2006 this was known as the ‘Self Assessment - Statement of Account’). The statement shows the current position on the taxpayer record.

Statement issue started in November 1996. The November statement used the Brought Forward style to present charge and payment details. This style of statement continued to be issued until the end of March 1997.

From April 1997 the presentation of information on statements changed with the introduction of the Open Item statement. The changes ensured that, as the accounting became more complex, statement information remained clear and easily understood by both taxpayers and staff. From August 2006 the Open Item statement has been largely replaced by the new Simple Statement, although it is still issued in a few cases. It is also the style still used to display statement information in function VIEW STATEMENT and output produced when using the SEES Statement facility.

From August 2006 the majority of statements are now issued in Simple Statement format. In a few complex cases, or where the taxpayer requests, we still issue the statement in Open Item format.

Brought Forward statement

Any balance, credit or debit, on the previous statement is brought forward as the opening accounting entry on the new statement. New liabilities, payments and so on, notified or received since the last statement was issued, are listed in date order.

The statement can act as a prompt or reminder to make payment. It also warns about interest and shows any interest that has accrued since the last statement was issued.

The taxpayer’s balance on the statement date of issue is shown. The statement balance becomes the opening entry on the next statement.

Open Item statement

Each charge that is either cleared in the statement period or that remains collectible is itemised on the statement. Any unallocated and / or overpaid payment credit is also shown.

The history of each charge or payment on the statement is detailed in full. The statement can be a prompt or reminder to make payment. It warns about interest and shows a separate total of accrued interest for any payment that is overdue.

(This content has been withheld because of exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act 2000)

Individual balances on charges and credits listed on a statement are added together along with any accrued interest to give a statement balance.

Simple statement

Any balance, credit or debit, on the previous statement is brought forward as the opening accounting entry on the new statement. New liabilities, changes to liabilities, payments and so on, notified or received since the last statement was issued, are listed in date order. The history of an individual charge and allocation of payments / credits are not shown.

The statement can act as a prompt or reminder to make payment. It also warns about interest. Interest is shown as one summarised total and the amount shown is the total interest and accrued interest that has arisen on the account since the previous statement was issued.

(This content has been withheld because of exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act 2000) SAM134000(This content has been withheld because of exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act 2000)

The layout of the statement now includes 3 columns, showing Tax Due, Credits, and Balance. Where there are 2 or more amounts of tax due for the same date these are grouped together and sub-totalled. The balance is then updated by the sub-total and not each individual entry. Where there are 2 or more credits for the same date these are also grouped together, sub-totalled, and the balance updated by the sub-totalled amount.

The taxpayer’s balance on the statement date of issue is shown. This includes any amounts shortly becoming due. The statement balance becomes the opening entry on the next statement.

A summary box shows the overall account balance. A payslip is only included where there is an amount to pay.

Note: All Simple Statements are displayed in function VIEW STATEMENT in Open Item format. You can view an issued Simple Statement through the online service SA View L & P.

More information

A statement created ‘today’ shows a statement date of ‘today’ minus 1 day and does not reflect the current accounting position. The following transactions which can be viewed on the current statement are excluded from a statement created ‘today’

  • Online movements, for example, a remission or a transfer from OAS, recorded ‘today’
  • Batch movements, for example, payments, recorded with a date of ‘today’ minus 1 working day

Using function VIEW STATEMENT, all transaction information can be viewed. From November 1999, however, the issued statement may differ in presentation from that displayed on screen.

For more information about the content of statements see section ‘Statement Content and Layout’ (SAM130000 onwards).