Paying VAT to HMRC
The easiest way to pay your VAT liability is through your online gateway.
The deadline for submitting your VAT return and paying VAT online is the 7th of the 2nd month following your period end. So if your VAT period ends 31 December, you have until 7 February to file and pay any VAT due.
Use the correct payment reference number
Your payment reference number will be your 9-digit VAT number. You must use this, or your payment will not be applied to your account.
You should use your business bank account to pay the VAT. The following link has various options on how you can pay. HMRC no longer accept cheques.
It may take up to three bank working days for payment to reach HMRC. Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays, so please make sure you leave sufficient time for the payment to reach HMRC in time.
You can set up a direct debit to pay your VAT automatically. Please log in to your gateway and select this option if you wish to do so. The direct debit will leave your bank account a few days after the filing deadline (assuming the VAT return has been submitted).