Records to keep if you are self-employed

What to keep

• All sales and income
• All business expenses
• VAT records, if you are registered for VAT
• PAYE records, if you employ people
• Records about your personal income
• Your grants, if you claimed through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme

Extra records under traditional accounting

• What you are owed but have not received yet
• What you have committed to spend but have not paid out yet
• The value of stock and work in progress at the end of your accounting period
• Your year end bank balances
• How much you have invested in the business in the year
• How much money you have taken out for your own use

Proof to hold on to

• Receipts for goods and stock
• Bank statements and chequebook stubs
• Sales invoices, till rolls and bank slips

How long to keep them

At least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline for the tax year. For the 2026/27 tax year the deadline is 31 January 2028, so keep those records until at least the end of January 2033.

If you send a return more than 4 years after the deadline, keep the records for 15 months after you send it.

If records are lost or destroyed

If you cannot replace them, you must do your best to provide figures, and tell HMRC when you file whether you are using estimated figures or provisional figures. Provisional figures are later replaced by the actual figures.

Common mistakes

• Keeping bank statements but not the receipts and invoices behind them.
• Mixing personal and business spending with nothing to tell them apart.
• Deleting records once the return is filed.

Sources

• GOV.UK, Business records if you're self-employed: what records to keep
• GOV.UK, Business records if you're self-employed: how long to keep your records