01/09/2026
"I made a loss, so I don't need to file."
We hear this every year. It's an honest assumption — and it costs people money.
Two things are wrong with it:
1. If HMRC has sent you a notice to file, you have to file. Profit, loss, or no trading at all. The obligation comes from the notice, not from whether you owe anything.
2. Your loss is worth something — but only if you report it.
That's the part most people miss. A trading loss can be carried forward indefinitely against future profits from the same trade. Make a £5,000 loss this year, then £10,000 profit next year, and you're only taxed on £5,000.
If you're newly self-employed (within your first four years), you may also be able to carry the loss back against earlier income — which can generate an actual refund.
But none of it happens automatically. You have to notify HMRC of the loss on a return, and there's a time limit — generally within four years of the end of the tax year the loss was made.
Skip the return because "there's no tax to pay," and you've quietly thrown away relief you were entitled to.
Made a loss last year? Message us before you write the year off.
