Tax Aid Tax Aid Who do we help Income is 20000 or less Cannot resolve their issue with HMRC Taxpayer is otherwise unrepresented ie they dont have an accountant If client is OVER 60 and not selfemployed contact ID: 780787
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Slide1
TaxAid is a small charity that provides free, independent tax advice to people on low incomes
Tax
Aid
Slide2Tax
Aid
Who do we help?
Income is £20,000 or less
Cannot resolve their issue with HMRC
Taxpayer is otherwise unrepresented (
ie
they don’t have an accountant)
If client is OVER 60 and not self-employed contact
Tax Help for Older People (0845 601 3321)
Slide3Tax
Aid
How do we help?
Telephone advice
Referrals to HMRC’s extra support team
Casework
Face to face appointments in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle
Slide4Tax
Aid
What sort of issues can we help with?
Most tax issues affecting individuals, sole trader and partnerships
Income tax, CGT, IHT
Tax debt advice
Can include international aspects
Slide5Tax
Aid
What DON’T we do?
Tax returns year on year
Tax credits
Company tax, VAT or payroll
Council tax
Slide6Tax
Aid
Key points for debt advisers
Tax debt is not set in stone – it can often be reduced or remitted.
Tax returns can sometimes be cancelled – do not assume they must be completed.
Slide7Tax
Aid
Dealing with tax debt
Step 1
Make sure the debt is correct. Remember, tax debt is not set in stone and it can often be reduced. In particular, check for penalties and determinations.
Step 2
If the debt is correct and cannot be reduced, what are the client’s circumstances? Complete I&E and establish disposable income and whether there are any assets.
Slide8Tax
Aid
How will HMRC collect the debt?
PAYE code
Time to Pay arrangements
Debt Collection Agencies
Direct Recovery of Debt
Taking Control of Goods (
distraint
)
County Court
IVAs, DROs and Bankruptcy
Remission for vulnerable taxpayers
Slide9Tax
Aid
Bankruptcy
HMRC pursue bankruptcy as a matter of policy, where a commercial creditor might not.
First indication is a letter from Bradford Enforcement Office – time to pay still possible.
Case is then transferred
to Enforcement and Insolvency Office
in Worthing
who
will issue
statutory
demand
Slide10Tax
Aid
Bankruptcy cont.
Two handed approach – manage adjournments and court process
and
bring tax affairs up to date
HMRC
cases all heard in
London
Action to change debt figure (returns, appeals)
is possible
throughout the
process
Debtor’s petition – bring affairs up to
date
Special tax rules for year of bankruptcy
Slide11Tax
Aid
Remission
HMRC does not “write off” tax debt
May
“remit” debt where there is no prospect of payment
Remission
may be temporary or permanent
Factors to be considered are:
- Age
and health
- Whether
still working
- Assets
Slide12Tax
Aid
When should you call us?
Typical issues which you should refer to
TaxAid
would be:
‘I have never been self-employed but HMRC has sent me a tax return.’
‘I owe HMRC £15,000 but I stopped being self-employed years ago.’
‘HMRC say I owe them £1,600, but I don’t know why.’
Slide13Tax
Aid
When should you call us?
‘I have been working for a while for my employer but he hasn’t given me any payslips.’
‘I have been self employed for many years but I haven’t sent in tax returns’
‘I have a tax bill that I can’t pay’
‘I think my employer is deducting the wrong amount of tax’
Slide14Tax
Aid
So when should you call us?
Whenever the client mentions
Tax!!!
Priority Adviser Line: 0300
330
5477
G
eneral
Public
Line: 0345
120 3779
Slide15Tax
Aid
Further support for debt advisers
Look at our website:
http://taxaid.org.uk/guides/voluntary-sector-advisers
and in particular our online training videos:
http://taxaid.org.uk/guides/voluntary-sector-advisers/on-line-training
Slide16Tax
Aid
Case Study 1a
Taxpayer has received Late Filing Penalty Notices for 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2014/15 totalling £2,700 but says they have never been self-employed.
Slide17Tax
Aid
Case Study 1a
You then discover that for the 2012/13 tax year, Taxpayer worked 2 cleaning jobs and was underpaid by £104 for this year as he received duplicated personal allowances. Taxpayer is now on benefits.
Slide18Tax
Aid
Case Study 1b
Taxpayer has received Late Filing Penalty Notices for 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2014/15 totalling £2,700 but says they have never been self-employed.
Slide19Tax
Aid
Case Study 1b
You then discover that although Taxpayer hasn’t done any self-employed work, he completed a CWF-1 in October 2012 as he intended to start his own gardening business
but couldn’t
find any work.
Slide20Tax
Aid
Case Study 1c
Taxpayer has received Late Filing Penalty Notices for 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2014/15 totalling £2,700 but says they have never been self-employed.
Slide21Tax
Aid
Case Study 1c
You
then discover
that Taxpayer has been working and paying tax under the Construction Industry Scheme since March 2012. He didn’t realise this meant he was self-employed.
Slide22Tax
Aid
Case Study 2a
TP owes HMRC £25,678.52. He has a Statement of Account with entries going back to 2002. The largest entry is a ‘determination’ for the 2002/03 tax year of £5,200 (with payments on account for the same amount for the following year). He used to be self-employed as a taxi driver but hasn’t worked for over 2 years because he suffered from a breakdown and is now on ESA. He admits that his tax returns were not filed for ‘quite a few years’ and says that he ‘buried his head in the sand’ because of his depression. HMRC is threatening bankruptcy.
TP jointly owns a house with his wife worth £200k
and
has a
mortgage of £110k
Slide23Tax
Aid
Case Study 2b
TP owes HMRC £25,678.52. He has a Statement of Account with entries going back to 2002. The largest entry is a ‘determination’ for the 2002/03 tax year of £5,200 (with payments on account for the same amount for the following year). He used to be self-employed as a taxi driver but hasn’t worked for over 2 years because he suffered from a breakdown and is now on ESA. He admits that his tax returns were not filed for ‘quite a few years’ and says that he ‘buried his head in the sand’ because of his depression. HMRC is threatening bankruptcy.
TP lives in rented accommodation and is in receipt
of housing benefit