Tax Return Paperwork Checklist

Who this is for

Everything the return needs, gathered before you start. Each document has a line for who sends it, when you expect it, a tick when it arrives and where it is filed; blank lines take whatever else applies to you.

Employees, pensioners, landlords and people with savings or side income who file their own personal tax return, or hand a folder to someone who files it for them.

What this helps you track

• Pay, pension and benefit statements for the tax year
• Interest, dividends, rent, online sales and other income records
• Receipts and statements behind each credit or relief you claim
• Tax already paid, last year's return and letters from the tax office
• Which documents are still missing and where each one is filed

How to use it

1. Write the tax year, whose return it is, your own deadline and the day you plan to sit down to it.
2. Cross out the lines that do not apply and add your own on the blank lines; the list is not tied to any country.
3. Write who sends each document and when you expect it, then tick it off as it arrives.
4. Note where each one is filed, paper folder or computer, so it can be found again quickly.
5. When every line you need is ticked, do the return in one sitting, with the sheet or the browser version beside you; it saves in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Which documents does my return need?

That depends on your country, your income and what you claim, so check your tax authority's own guidance. The list covers the usual kinds of record; cross out what does not apply and add anything it asks for.

How is this different from the tax year-end records checklist?

That checklist is for sole traders gathering business records such as sales, purchases and equipment bought. This one is for a personal return: pay and pension statements, savings income and the receipts behind reliefs.

How long should I keep these documents?

Tax authorities set their own record-keeping periods, and they differ. Check the rule where you file, and keep this sheet with the documents so you know what was used for which year.

Can I use it if an accountant does my return?

Yes. Gather and tick everything on the list, then hand over the folder with the sheet on top. The blank lines are a good place to note what the accountant asks for each year.