If you happen to be in the smug group that managed to complete every client tax return before Christmas, please accept our congratulations.
Regrettably, from conversations with friends in the industry and responses to articles in previous years, it is apparent that you represent a relatively small proportion of those whose practices rely to any great extent on the provision of tax return services to their clients.
Today's announcement that there will be no self assessment late filing penalties for those who file online by 28 February should offer a little relief but while it could be tempting to take your foot off the accelerator, don't let the relaxation spill into your planned time off in February - haven't we been through enough?
It's been a full blown nightmare
Those of us with long memories will recall the heady days of January 2020 when the tax return season was merely a headache. With the advent of coronavirus, in January 2022 it is potentially a full-blown nightmare.
Harking back to the old, pre-pandemic days, the problem always seemed insuperable. We had been working flat out for weeks, staff members were beginning to take time off to recover from mental health issues or merely catch up on sleep, while dilatory clients had a nasty habit of holding back tax return information until the last minute, despite liberal use of both carrots and sticks, neither of which ever seem to have the desired effect on the worst of the miscreants.
The consequence was round-the-clock working, the sacrifice of weekends and a serious risk of legal action when exhausted colleagues inevitably made mistakes that could prove ridiculously costly.
The horror story continues
Roll on two years and we face a whole new set of problems. Having thought that coronavirus was well under control and begun a tentative return to office working, we suddenly find ourselves plunged into a horror movie in real life.
According to the Office for National Statistics, by the end of last week one in every 15 members of the population was suffering from the virus. That worrying rate increased to 1 in 10 in London and, terrifyingly, it was suggested that this increased to one in six of 27-year-olds aka the age group that might well be at the sharp end of tax return completion.
While many will be asymptomatic, a fair proportion of sufferers really will be suffering. This will mean staff illness and absence, inevitably exacerbated by childcare duties as the youngsters return to school and either discover that there are no teachers available leading to closure or catch the virus and are confined to home, needing lots of love and attention oblivious to the demands of tax return season.
As if all of that was not bad enough, clients will also fall ill and you can bet your bottom dollar that it won’t be the ones who listened to pleading and got their tax returns in last summer.
Don't extend the agony
Due to the current sickness rates, which must be affecting their officers too, it was no surprise that HMRC has decided to waive self assessment penalties.
But please do not let your clients find out that they can get away with a further delay at no cost. It will only extend the agony.
Embrace the 'free time'
For those who can always see a half-full glass, there are a couple of positives. First, over the last couple of years, we have all been developing our IT capabilities to the point where preparing and filing tax returns from home and checking them at long distance has become perfectly feasible.
In addition, we no longer need to suffer the stresses of travelling to and from work, nor waste valuable hours every week in doing so.
Even if we do not invest all of this 'free' time working, at least partners and staff can get a little more rest during January than would have been the case before the pandemic and work more efficiently.
Ultimately, there are only four more weeks of pain to endure before you can sit back and contemplate a holiday in the sun, assuming that flights are available and your preferred destination will welcome British travellers.
Therefore, try not to kill yourselves, staff members or kids keen to keep getting under your feet and plough on, in the certain knowledge that within the next couple of months grateful clients will bolster the bank balance in return for all of the hard work.