--- title: "Payments on Account Calculator (UK): What You Pay on 31 January and 31 July" url: https://decisionscalc.com/tools/uk-payments-on-account-calculator/ description: "Your Self Assessment balancing payment and payments on account: what’s due on 31 January and 31 July, the £1,000 and 80% rules. Matches gov.uk’s example." publisher: DecisionsCalc note: General information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Figures name their source and the date they were read. --- [GB · figures checked 10 Nov 2026](https://decisionscalc.com/methodology/) [How we check figures](https://decisionscalc.com/editorial-standards/) [Corrections log](https://decisionscalc.com/editorial-standards/#corrections-log) [Report an error](mailto:hello@decisionscalc.com?subject=Possible%20error%20on%20%2Ftools%2Fuk-payments-on-account-calculator%2F) Tax · UK · Self Assessment # Payments on account calculator On 31 January you pay the balance of last year's Self Assessment bill and the first half of this year's in advance. With a £6,000 bill for 2025-26 and £4,000 already paid on account, **£5,000** is due on 31 January 2027 and £3,000 on 31 July 2027. Enter your own figures. **Rules:** [gov.uk: payments on account](https://www.gov.uk/understand-self-assessment-bill/payments-on-account) (read 10 November 2026; this calculator reproduces its worked example, and the page explains how to reduce them online or on form SA303). Class 2 National Insurance, interest and penalties are not included. General information, not tax advice. ## How it works - **Balancing payment**: the whole bill for the year just ended (plus any capital gains tax and student loan) less the payments on account you made towards it. - **Payments on account**: two halves of that bill, paid in advance towards the current year, on 31 January and 31 July. - **No payments on account** if the bill was under £1,000, or if more than 80% of your tax was taken at source. - **gov.uk's example**: a £3,000 bill for 2023-24 with £900 + £900 paid on account gives a £1,200 balancing payment plus a £1,500 first payment: £2,700 by 31 January 2025, then £1,500 by 31 July 2025. ## Frequently asked questions **What are payments on account?** Advance payments towards your next Self Assessment bill. Each one is usually half of last year's bill (income tax plus Class 4 National Insurance), paid by 31 January and 31 July. The balancing payment for the year just ended is due on the same 31 January. **Do I have to make payments on account?** Not if last year's Self Assessment bill was under £1,000, or if more than 80% of the tax you owed was already taken at source (for example through PAYE). Otherwise HMRC expects them. **Why is my first January bill so big?** In your first year with a bill of £1,000 or more you pay the whole bill for the year just ended plus the first payment on account for the current year, up to one and a half times your bill in one go. gov.uk's own example: a £3,000 bill becomes £2,700 in January when £1,800 was already paid on account. **Are capital gains tax and student loans included?** No. Capital gains tax and student loan repayments collected through Self Assessment are paid in the balancing payment only; they do not create payments on account. **Can I reduce my payments on account?** Yes, if you expect a lower bill this year: in your online account (Reduce payments on account) or on form SA303. If your final bill turns out higher, HMRC charges interest on the difference. ## Related - [UK pension drawdown calculator](https://decisionscalc.com/tools/uk-pension-drawdown-calculator/) - [UK Budget 2026: every change](https://decisionscalc.com/articles/uk-budget-2026-every-change/) - [Put this calculator on your own site, free](https://decisionscalc.com/widgets/) Cite or link to this calculator DecisionsCalc (2026). Payments on Account Calculator (UK): What You Pay on 31 January and 31 July. https://decisionscalc.com/tools/uk-payments-on-account-calculator/ You are welcome to quote our figures with a link. Each figure on the page names its official source and the date we checked it. ## Get an email when UK rules change Tax bands, allowances and benefit rates change every year. We email you when a rule our UK calculators use changes, usually a few times a year. Confirm by email; unsubscribe in one click. Was this page useful? **Report a wrong figure or missing information**