More than 1,500 people took a break from turkey and tinsel on Christmas Day to file their tax returns online, according to new figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
HMRC said 1,548 people filed tax returns online on Christmas Day, a 40 per cent increase on 25 December 2011 when 1,100 people did so.
On Christmas Eve 2012, 14,330 people submitted an online tax return, a 248 per cent increase on the 2011 total of 4,115.
And on Boxing Day, 4,685 people sent their tax return over the internet, up by 33 per cent on Boxing Day 2011, when 3,512 people filed online.
HMRC, which issued the figures on 27 December, has launched a new advertising campaign encouraging the 10.6 million taxpayers who submit self assessment tax returns to file online, and pay the tax they owe, by the 31 January 2013 deadline.
The penalty regime for late filing means that even if a return is only a day late, a penalty of £100 will apply, even if there is no tax to pay or the taxpayer has paid the tax they owe, with further penalties for continuing delays in filing.
