Can you make a late or out of time appeal or request a review of an HMRC decision?

When you receive a decision letter from HMRC and there is a right to appeal or review, if you disagree with the decision you should act promptly. If you don’t, HMRC will act as though you have accepted HMRC’s decision and they will then act accordingly.  Your opportunity to challenge HMRC’s decision is restricted to a short period of time once you have received the letter, so it is important to act quickly at the earliest stage.

If you do not engage with HMRC and do not pay your tax bill on time, you may have to pay interest on the outstanding amount as well as a penalty or surcharge. Once you understand your position, you can then engage with HMRC and you can either appeal their decision or to come to an arrangement so as to avoid any enforcement action.

If you are late and miss the deadline please read the later section on Missed HMRC deadlines or out of time HMRC appeals or actions.

Our specialist HMRC and Tax Disputes Solicitors know that the enquiries we receive are often complex and time sensitive.

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back.

Usually, appeals against HMRC decisions follow the same processes, although there are some differences depending on whether the appeal relates to direct taxes or indirect taxes. At a high level, an indirect tax is a tax on expenditure and is paid to HMRC by a supplier of the goods and services (VAT is an example). A Direct tax is a tax on income profits and wealth and is paid directly from the originator to HMRC (Income Tax, Corporation Tax etc.) Anyone who is enquiring about a Self-Assessment penalty for example would be under the direct tax route.

To appeal a decision on a Self-Assessment (direct tax), you must appeal within 30 days of the date on the decision letter. This is the date of the decision letter and not the date the letter is received. Be aware, your countdown has therefore already begun, even before you receive the letter. It is important to seek legal advice as soon as possible to ensure you have enough time to consider your options and your position. If you appeal, you will need to explain why you disagree with the decision and if possible, provide supporting information — such as a copy of a bank statement or receipts.

If your appeal is received on time, the officer at HMRC will consider your appeal and will either agree with you and amend their decision or confirm their original decision in their conclusion letter. If parties cannot reach an agreement, HMRC will write to you to tell you what their current view of the matter is and offer you an impartial statutory review. You can then either accept the offer of a review or appeal to the tax tribunal.

Our specialist HMRC and Tax Disputes Solicitors know that the enquiries we receive are often complex and time sensitive.  Instructing our team at an early stage will ensure that an appeal can be made to the tax tribunal in good time if required.

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back.

Statutory Review

A statutory review is carried out impartially by a “review officer” who works in HMRC’s Solicitor’s Office and Legal Services directorate. If you disagree with the review officer’s decision, you still have the option to appeal to the tax tribunal.

Whatever option you decide to follow, you only have 30 days from the date on HMRC’s conclusion letter to accept the offer of a review or appeal to the tax tribunal. If you do not take any action within the 30 day period, the original decision will stand and your appeal will be treated as “settled by agreement”.

For decisions on indirect taxes such as VAT Assessments or VAT Penalties, in HMRC’s decision letter you will be offered a review and the option to appeal to the tax tribunal. You have 30 days to accept the offer of a review or appeal to the tax tribunal. If you do not take any action, the original decision will stand. If you have more information to send to HMRC but need more time to do this, you can ask HMRC to extend the time limit for you to accept the offer of review but you must do this before the 30 day deadline.

In summary, failure to meet these time scales can leave you unable to challenge the decision any further, especially if the appeal is made too late.

Our specialist HMRC and Tax Disputes Solicitors know that the enquiries we receive are often complex and time sensitive.  Instructing our team at an early stage will ensure that an appeal can be made to the tax tribunal in good time if required.

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back.

Missed HMRC deadlines or out of time HMRC appeals or actions

If you miss the 30 day deadline to appeal to HMRC (direct tax) or accept the review offer (direct tax or indirect tax), you will need to have a reasonable excuse for missing the deadline. HMRC publish a full list of reasonable excuses on gov.uk.

Some examples of what HMRC may accept as a reasonable excuse for delay includes the death of your partner or another close relative, an unexpected stay in hospital that prevented you from dealing with your tax affairs, or a serious or life-threatening illness.

You would be expected to provide evidence of these circumstances to show that these affected your ability to appeal within the 30 day time limit. The burden is on you to show you have a reasonable excuse for the delay.

If HMRC do not believe that there was a reasonable excuse, it will not matter how strong your position was or what the outcome may have been had the case been heard before the tribunal, you are out of time to appeal so their decision will stand. Therefore, it is imperative to ensure that you take legal advice as soon as you receive a decision letter from HMRC so you can decide whether you will exercise your right of appeal within the relevant time limits.

Our specialist HMRC and Disputes Solicitors know that the enquiries we receive are often complex and time sensitive. In certain cases if you wish to discuss if a tax liability can be appealed out of time or if you have a reasonable excuse, we can offer fixed price consultations and our specialist HMRC and Disputes Solicitors would be happy to discuss if your enquiry would be suitable for this route.

For a confidential free discussion, call us today on 01908 414990,  alternatively email us at Hello@altion-law.co.uk or complete our Free Enquiry Form and we will call you back.