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Tax compliance serviceTax enquiriesBeing investigated by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) can be disruptive, intrusive and expensive. Sometimes a case can drag on for a year or more, saddling you, the taxpayer, with spiraling stress levels and mounting costs. An investigation may be triggered when HMRC pick up something they see as an anomaly on a tax return or they may act in response to a tip-off, something they spot in a local newspaper or even an overheard conversation in the pub. Often it can be because their computer picks up an unexpected trend, however legitimate it may be. But they don't have to have a reason at all. Every taxpayer is at risk of being chosen at any time, purely on a random basis. No-one is immune. It is up to you to disprove them! This all takes time and has the potential to be costly in professional fees. Our experience of recent tax enquiries:Last year we noticed a sharp increase in Aspect Enquiries (these are where HMRC raise questions only on specific aspects of a set of Accounts or Tax Return). This was predicted and (in a perverse way) welcomed as a better alternative to the dreaded "Full Enquiry". We also noticed a number of "Compliance visits" last year. These are normally PAYE or VAT inspections, where they will send someone out to you for a day or two to inspect your records and have a general look at your accounting records. They will look specifically at all the normal contentious areas. You may be aware that some time ago the Inland Revenue and Customs & Excise merged together so that tax, NI & VAT are all covered by the same authority. As part of this merger, HMRC have now completed a programme of training all their inspectors in ALL aspects. So the former tax inspectors now know about NI and VAT as well. It now appears that the HMRC approach is to start with "Compliance inspections" where a HMRC Officer will visit you and carry out an initial inspection of all your records to ensure compliance with all aspects of tax, NI and VAT. We are told to expect a deluge of these because there has been a period of inactivity while HMRC have been re-training. Also it is clear that the Government needs to raise revenue in every way possible and fair taxation is a major part of the strategy. We still find that HMRC are not at all fair in their tax assessments - they are clearly incentivised by collecting as much tax as possible regardless of fairness. We have to fight tooth and nail to secure a reasonable outcome. It should be noted that another recent development is that HMRC are following up on any discrepancy between Tax Returns and their own information. Most commonly interest received - many people "forget" some "small" detail but now they are cross checking and doing something about it. Obviously their systems have been improved to allow this. Our Tax Compliance ServiceWe have taken out an insurance policy that enables us to offer our clients Tax Compliance, a service that protects you from the financial implications of an investigation or dispute with the tax authorities. Because we can recover the cost of representing you from our policy, in most cases, other than a small annual fee to ensure cover within the service, you pay nothing at all and we can defend you for as long as it takes. Tax & VAT support helplineAs part of the Tax Compliance package, your business has access to a valuable helpline to guide you through the legal minefield of dealing with Tax and VAT. This helpline offers you instant telephone access to expert, tailored advice, leaving you free to get on with running your business. Why leave it to chance ? To protect you, and your business, contact us now on 01604 678470 / 678473 or by email julie  elsbyandco.co.uk for further details. |
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