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When you go self-employed, tax is a major point of confusion. Whether you’re a dancer, a professional footballer, a landlord, a consultant, a trader, or anything else, almost all of us get stuck when it comes to our tax liabilities.
Three big questions are:
And because we’re Taxfix, we’ve written this article to answer all of those questions for you right here, right now.
The tax that you owe is based on what you earn over a 12 month period. The period that most people use is the tax year – 6th April to 5th April in any given two year period – but you are allowed to choose your own basis period. That said, we’d recommend sticking with the tax year unless there’s a specific reason that you want to use a different one.
Why make it more complicated, right?
When it comes to recording your income, it’s worthwhile creating spreadsheets for each tax year. You can split them into monthly tabs and record both your income and expenses. That will help when it comes to the dreaded tax return time. That way, you won’t have to scramble with a highlighter and bank statement at the 11th hour.
What you earn in each tax year is what will be totaled and taxed. Use our calculator to work out how much you might owe.
When you’re self-employed, you have to pay your income tax and national insurance contributions yourself in your annual Self Assessment. Our calculator helps you quickly assess how much you owe.
However you may be eligible for a tax refund when:
In your case when you earn £50,000:
You pay no income tax on first £12,570 that you make
You pay £7,286 at basic income tax rate (20%) on the next £36,430
No contributions on the first £12,570 that you make
You pay £2,186 in contributions (at 6%) on the next £36,430 that you make
You pay £0 in NI Class 2 contributions
You need to save
to pay your £9,471.56 tax bill by 31/1/2026 which is in 666 days
Here’s another mind bender. You’re probably aware of the 31st January tax return deadline. But in what year are you first liable to pay? You might be surprised to learn that you don’t owe tax until nine months after the tax year that you worked in ends.
As if it weren’t already complicated with the April to April year?!
Key dates in the current 2025/26 tax year 👇
| Deadline | Date | Year |
| Tax year starts | 6th April | 2025 |
| Tax year ends | 5th April | 2026 |
| Register for self assessment | 5th October | 2026 |
| Pay tax bill by PAYE salary | 30th December | 2026 |
| Self assessment deadline | 31st January | 2027 |
This all depends how much you earn. When you’re self-employed, there are two types of tax that you might be liable to pay:
National Insurance rates in the 2025/26 tax year 👇
| NI class | Who pays? | How much? |
| Class 1 | Employees earning over £12,570 | 8% on earnings between £242 and £967 per week
2% if you earn £967+ per week |
| Class 1A/1B | Employers | 15% |
| Class 3 | Voluntary contributions | £17.75 per week |
| Class 4 | Self-employed earning over £12,570 | 6% on profits between £12,570-£50,270
2% on profits over £50,270 |
The income tax rates in the 2025/26 tax year 👇
| Income | Tax rate | Tax band |
| Up to £12,570 | 0% | Personal allowance |
| £12,571 to £50,270 | 20% | Basic rate |
| £50,271 to £125,140 | 40% | Higher rate |
| over £125,141 | 45% | Additional rate |
If you have any more questions about how or when to file your tax return, don’t hesitate to give our support team a buzz. You can catch them on [email protected].
Or see our Guides, Calculators or Taxopedia
