How to register as self-employed
Updated 10 Oct 2026
How do I register as self-employed?
You register with HMRC for Self Assessment, online at gov.uk. Once you're registered, HMRC sends you a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR), which you use for every tax return.
You'll need:
- your National Insurance number;
- your name, address, date of birth and phone number;
- the date you started working for yourself, and what you do.
Registering is free. You don't need an accountant to do it.
When do I need to register?
By 5 October after the end of the tax year you started. If you started on 1 June 2026, that's during the 2026/27 tax year (which ends on 5 April 2027), so you'd register by 5 October 2027.
If you earn less than £1,000 a year from your self-employment, before expenses, you usually don't need to register. That's the trading allowance. If you earn more, or you want to pay voluntary National Insurance to protect your State Pension, register.
What will I pay, and when?
- Income Tax on your profit (what you earn minus allowable expenses), at the same rates as everyone else, after your Personal Allowance.
- Class 4 National Insurance: 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above that.
- Class 2 National Insurance: with profits of £7,105 or more, you don't pay it, but the year still counts for your State Pension. Below that, you can choose to pay it voluntarily.
You pay what you owe for a tax year by 31 January after it ends, the same day as the online tax return deadline.
What does my first year look like?
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| The day you start | Keep a record of everything you earn and spend for the business |
| By 5 October after your first tax year ends | Register for Self Assessment |
| By 31 January after that | File your first tax return online, and pay the tax for your first year |
| The same 31 January | Often, the first payment on account for the next year is due too |
That last row catches people out. If your tax bill is £1,000 or more, HMRC usually asks for half of next year's bill in advance, on 31 January and 31 July. So your first January bill can be about one and a half years' tax. How payments on account work.
How do people put money aside for tax?
A common habit is to move a fixed share of every payment you receive into a separate savings account, so the January bill is already there. The right share depends on your profit and your other income, and the take-home pay calculator can show the tax on a given profit.
Will I need Making Tax Digital?
Depending on your income, you may need to keep digital records and send updates to HMRC every quarter. What Making Tax Digital means for you.
What about a pension?
When you work for yourself there's no employer paying into a pension, so it's up to you. Contributions get tax relief. Pensions when you're self-employed.
Keep the tax money visible: add your tax savings pot to Blooom, and Coming up shows your 31 January and 31 July dates beside it.
Sources: gov.uk "Register for Self Assessment", "Working for yourself", "Self-employed National Insurance rates", "Tax-free allowances on property and trading income", "Understand your Self Assessment tax bill: payments on account". Read 10 Oct 2026. Review due April 2027, or sooner if a rule changes.