We are often approached by clients when applying for a mortgage to present them with an SA302 for the previous two or three tax years. This is a key document that is often requested by banks and building societies as part of a mortgage application. More often than not a client will approach a mortgage advisor or financial planner to help them pick out and apply for the right mortgage that fits their individual circumstances. Once the correct or most suitable mortgage product has been chosen the advisor or broker is then likely to ask you for your SA302 and refer you to your accountant to obtain this. So what is an SA302? An SA302 is essentially a document that displays an individual's tax breakdown and documents earnings or income based on the latest Self Assessment Tax Return. This is the main document used to prove earnings or taxable income for a tax year. What is an SA302 used for? If you are self employed, either a sole trader or the director of a limited company, then you can use the SA302 to provide evidence of your income. As we mentioned at the start of the this blog post, this is often required when applying for a mortgage. How do I access my SA302? If you submit your Self Assessment Tax Return yourself then you will able to take the following steps to access your SA302 for the relevant tax year: Login to your online HMRC account or Government Gateway account. Navigate to Self Assessment. You should see this listed on your account. Head over to the area called "More Self Assessment Details". Then click on "Get your SA302 Tax Calculation". Finally click the option to "Print Your Tax Calculation". You will then have what is referred to as the SA302. Another option is to ask your accountant if they complete and submit your Self Assessment Tax Return for you. Accountants file your tax return using professional accounting software which allows for the SA302, or equivalent, to saved via a PDF and then emailed to a client. Will my Bank accept the Accountant Software SA302? Times are changing, as they should during this electronic age, and banks and building societies are and have moved away from insisting on HMRC posted documents only. During 2017 HMRC announced that they would no-longer issue paper SA302 documents to registered agents (i.e. your accountant). Instead accountants should use their professional accountant software to print and supply the SA302 document. You can read more about this here: https://taxagents.blog.gov.uk/2017/08/25/printed-sa-tax-calculations-tax-agents/ The Council of Mortgage Lenders has also agreed with HMRC that an SA302 provided by an accountant should be accepted for a mortgage application. This effectively gives the accountant provided SA302 the same standing as the HMRC provided document. The only difference is that you don't need to wait on the telephone for hours waiting for HMRC to pick up and then wait a further week or two to receive the document from HMRC in the post. HMRC have published a list of mortgage providers who accept the accountant provided SA302. You can access the full list here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mortgage-providers-and-lenders-who-accept-a-sa302-tax-calculation-or-tax-year-overview If you need any help in accessing your SA302 then feel free to contact cheaper accountant at any time. We will happily email this across to you free of charge and without delay. We always want your mortgage application to run smoothly as we understand how important this is to you.

Sole Trader