Cast an eye over our 9 telltale signs and see if they sound familiar to you…

You don’t where to begin

In hindsight maybe it would have been wiser to take heed of those reminders.

You feel like taking a hammer to HMRC’s website

No wonder you left it this late. A glossary wouldn’t go amiss… nor would a stiff drink.

You’re in a paper finding panic

Strange forms, bills from yonks back, invoices from ages ago – you need them all apparently. Suddenly a filing system doesn’t seem so square.

You see numbers everywhere

Your vision resembles Neo’s in Matrix after hours spent looking at figures, an array of receipts and invoices giving the world a numerical glow.

You wish you used an accountant

It’ll be easy, you thought. ‘Tax doesn’t have to be taxing’ they said.

You’re thinking up outrageous excuses to get you off the hook

Pesky pets? World politics? Evading espionage overseas? The bigger the fib the better, the more wild the more chance it’ll work (you hope).

You’re seeking others in the same boat

It’s comforting to know you’re not the only one in Self Assessment hell, so you’re searching the web for others sharing your predicament

You fear for the future of your bank balance

As much as you wish you’d been sloppy, all the figures are in fact, correct. Time for another stiff drink – if you can still afford it.

You promise yourself you won’t make the same mistake next year

That was pretty tense. Here’s to a more tranquil tax return next time…