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Self assessment tax return fine !
- Thread starter Leas
- Start date
D
Deleted User X18H
Guest
Sounds like a scam does it direct you to pay it by debit card?
somerset
New member
You didn't submit your return by end of January is my guess.... even as PAYE you can be selected to do a return, usually if your income has increased/ decreased from previous levels....
....or if you have multiple income streams.
Gazwag
5 millionth post poster
Probably best to give HMRC a ring then, try first thing in the morning you can get through quicker
Freddie Goodwin.
Well-known member
This should be for the period April 2010-April 2011. If you had to do a return in the previous year to that, and did not make it clear you were now PAYE and below the high earning limit, then a return would be expected for 10/11 and should have been submitted by end Jan 2012.
HMRC do tend to issue lots of reminders before all the deadlines and pens, did you not see any of these? leaving it until a late filing pen has been raised seriously reduces your chances of getting it nulled. The fine is for late filing of a return and not for the non-payment of tax.
Sorry it's not good news and I'm sure you're not the only one to be caught by this.
HMRC do tend to issue lots of reminders before all the deadlines and pens, did you not see any of these? leaving it until a late filing pen has been raised seriously reduces your chances of getting it nulled. The fine is for late filing of a return and not for the non-payment of tax.
Sorry it's not good news and I'm sure you're not the only one to be caught by this.
Worthingite
Sexy Pete... :D
I've got one too. TBH I've been ignoring it, thinking that it would correct itself (bit silly I know). Like the OP I have only ever been on PAYE. Thing is, they stick it to you at £10 a day, I now owe them £1200!!!! Cheeky fuckers, and now they're trying to strong arm me into paying the full balance (while I'm contesting it). HMRC are a bunch of seriously unscrupulous fucks, they don't care about circumstance or situation, they just want their money (despite not owing it in the first place, and it being their mistake!!) Having spoken to one guy last week from HMRC his view was that "if you pay it and we find it to be our error, we will refund it at the beginning of the next tax year in the form of a rebate cheque" - so it basically means if I pay it now, they will have my money for 8 months, gaining interest. Nice! Isn't going to happen though - I'm taking it through the CAB (and I would advise the OP to do the same). If you have proof that you were on PAYE for the period of time in question, there shouldn't be anything they can do.
Sorry but why didn't you challenge it when you were first asked to do a return ?? Being on PAYE does NOT exempt you from doing a return. If you're asked to do one then you need to do it. If you do it and inform them your only income is via PAYE ( even if you earnings mean you pay 40% tax ) then they will usually tell you that you don't need to do a return going forwards.
Worthingite
Sexy Pete... :D
Because I didn't realise I had to!! In 15 years of paying tax it is the first time I have ever been required to do one - and my assumption was that they had made a mistake. I have contacted them several times about it since, so it's not like it's just been left. I have made it perfectly clear every time I have spoken to them that I don't understand why they have sent me a self returns assessment form, given that I don't do self returns. In fairness Westdene, you've explained it better in a couple of sentences than they have in half a dozen phone calls. Their responses have ranged from not believing that I'm on PAYE (despite all the P46's in my drawer displaying it quite clearly), to "well, if it's our fault, pay it anyway and we'll give it back later", which I will NOT be doing!!! If I owe anything for making a mistake, I am happy to pay that because that's my own f*** up, but I refuse to wade through their pointless and misleading forms, when they can see quite clearly how much I have been paid - and having my last 5 P46's to hand, I can help them with that if they can't.
HMRC are one of the few government organisations that I truly loathe. I think others (the NHS, police, education etc) do their jobs very well and work hard, but HMRC just seem to clamp down on who they want, when they want, and balls to the actual circumstances. As you can tell by the way I'm ranting, they ain't on my Christmas card list!!!!
Because I didn't realise I had to!! In 15 years of paying tax it is the first time I have ever been required to do one - and my assumption was that they had made a mistake. I have contacted them several times about it since, so it's not like it's just been left. I have made it perfectly clear every time I have spoken to them that I don't understand why they have sent me a self returns assessment form, given that I don't do self returns. In fairness Westdene, you've explained it better in a couple of sentences than they have in half a dozen phone calls. Their responses have ranged from not believing that I'm on PAYE (despite all the P46's in my drawer displaying it quite clearly), to "well, if it's our fault, pay it anyway and we'll give it back later", which I will NOT be doing!!! If I owe anything for making a mistake, I am happy to pay that because that's my own f*** up, but I refuse to wade through their pointless and misleading forms, when they can see quite clearly how much I have been paid - and having my last 5 P46's to hand, I can help them with that if they can't.
HMRC are one of the few government organisations that I truly loathe. I think others (the NHS, police, education etc) do their jobs very well and work hard, but HMRC just seem to clamp down on who they want, when they want, and balls to the actual circumstances. As you can tell by the way I'm ranting, they ain't on my Christmas card list!!!!
Fair enough but I don't think you're going to get off this one. I'd suggest you do the return ASAP as a very minimum.
PS - they carry out random return requests to try and deter fraud.
Worthingite
Sexy Pete... :D
Fair do's. Appreciate the advice, I know they can get particularly arsey if things don't go their way!!! I shall dig it out, and fill it out, I've got all the info to hand, so it can't take me that long.....can it??!
Worthingite
Sexy Pete... :D
As I say, I only ignored them initially because I thought they were sent in error and would be resolved. Stupid I know, if I do have to pay anything then I guess it's no one's fault other than my own, I'm just hoping they go lenient on me - doubt it though.
Freddie Goodwin.
Well-known member
As Westdene says, they can randomly issue forms an. How would they know somebody is only PAYE and doesn't have another income? So, they have the right to ask and, once a return has been requested it needs to be completed. In most of these cases it may well be a 'nil' return, which only takes a few mins to do but it is your legal declaration of the facts you have given.
Up until this year, the fine did not exceed the tax so, if no tax to pay then no fine but this led to many not bothering and HMRC having to do all the chasing, raise the pens etc, only to cancel when no tax due.
As stated earlier, the fine is for not submitting the return, and there are more than 10 months from the end of the tax year to the submission date at the end of Jan.
You may get lucky in this 1st year of mass pens, HMRC does tend to cave in, but it's important to keep calm on the phone because making a friend, rather than an enermy, on the other end of the line might just do it.
Up until this year, the fine did not exceed the tax so, if no tax to pay then no fine but this led to many not bothering and HMRC having to do all the chasing, raise the pens etc, only to cancel when no tax due.
As stated earlier, the fine is for not submitting the return, and there are more than 10 months from the end of the tax year to the submission date at the end of Jan.
You may get lucky in this 1st year of mass pens, HMRC does tend to cave in, but it's important to keep calm on the phone because making a friend, rather than an enermy, on the other end of the line might just do it.
Worthingite
Sexy Pete... :D
Yeaaah.......might have to try to calm it down with them in the future. I do believe I called them a "bunch of money grabbing, thieving fuckwits" last time I spoke to them. I'd had a bad day and calling about a (then) £800 tax bill just lit the touchpaper. Funnily enough, I'm usually the calm collected one, and I do a similar job to them for a utility company. To be fair, I did ring and apologise later on. I know I didn't exactly help myself there, before anyone says!!!
Tom Hark Preston Park
Will Post For Cash
- Jul 6, 2003
- 72,380
A bit like those simple souls that think parking fines apply to everybody apart from themselves then?
A bit like those simple souls that think parking fines apply to everybody apart from themselves then?
To be fair I think alot of people don't realise that anyone can be asked to fill one in randomly when nothing has changed. I do now and I will look out for one in future.
Vankleek Hill Seagull
Well-known member
I think HMRC should adopt the Canadian system. You have to fill out a tex return every year. No excuse for not doing your taxes.
Why didn't you simply return the form stating your only income was PAYE? This would have sorted everything and then put the onus on the HMRC to prove otherwise. Self assessment is not a difficult form to complete. All you have to do is enter any income streams you have so if you were only on PAYE then it's very very simple.