Read our Privacy noticeHMRC is rolling out a new ‘penalty points’ system this month that could land forgetful taxpayers with a £200 fine. Under the current rules, those who miss the 31 January self-assessment submission deadline get an automatic £100 fine. Each late quarterly submission will earn one penalty point instead of an automatic fine, with four points (or four missed quarterly deadlines) resulting in a £200 fine. The quarterly penalty points system will not apply in the first year of the scheme, which begins in April, to give traders time to adapt. HMRC explained in a paper on the changes: “The new penalty regime is simpler and fairer than the previous system.