Freelancer Tax Planner — Annual Edition (UK)

Self Assessment doesn't have to mean January panic.

Most UK freelancers ignore tax until January 31st, then scramble to find receipts and guess what they owe. This planner runs year-round — log income and expenses as they happen, see your projected tax bill updating in real time, and know exactly how much your Payments on Account should be so there are no surprises.

What's Included

• Running tax estimate: enter income and expenses throughout the year — see your projected Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance updating month by month, not just once at filing time
• Payment on Account tracker: shows your two POA payments (January 31 and July 31) based on last year's bill, flags whether you'll owe a balancing payment, and models whether to reduce your POA via HMRC
• Allowable expense tracker: categorised by HMRC-recognised headings — use of home, travel, professional subscriptions, equipment, training, phone/internet, accountancy fees, insurance
• Class 2 & Class 4 NI calculator: automatically applies the Small Profits Threshold, Class 4 rates, and the Upper Profits Limit — shows exactly what you owe in NI separately from income tax
• Personal Allowance & tax band tracker: accounts for the £12,570 personal allowance, basic rate band (20%), higher rate band (40%), and the £100K personal allowance taper if applicable
• Monthly set-aside calculator: based on your year-to-date income, shows exactly how much to move to your tax pot each month so you're covered for January
• VAT threshold monitor: tracks your rolling 12-month turnover against the £90K VAT threshold — warns you when you're approaching so registration doesn't catch you off guard
• Year-end summary: formatted to match the Self Assessment tax return — hand it to your accountant or use it to fill in the SA103 (self-employment supplement) yourself
• Works in Google Sheets (free) and Excel

Who This Is For

• UK freelancers and sole traders who file Self Assessment and want to stop guessing until January
• Self-employed people approaching the VAT threshold who need to track rolling turnover
• Anyone who has been surprised by a Payments on Account bill and wants to see it coming
• Freelancers who pay an accountant but want to arrive at the meeting with clean, categorised numbers instead of a shoebox of receipts

How It Works

1. Enter your prior year's tax bill (for Payment on Account baseline) and estimated annual income
2. Log invoices and expenses month by month — takes under 10 minutes per month
3. The dashboard shows your projected year-end liability, monthly set-aside amount, and next POA due date
4. The VAT monitor updates automatically — you'll see a warning when turnover approaches £90K
5. At year-end (April 5), open the summary tab — it pre-fills the numbers your accountant needs, or maps directly to the SA103 boxes