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Tax Enquiries

Any taxpayer – whether you are a sole trader, small limited company, multinational or an individual – can be subject to a tax enquiry by HMRC.  In recent years, HMRC have been tasked with collecting more tax from enquiries and as a result have adopted a much more business like approach to how they run an enquiry; and charging a penalty at the end of the enquiry is now the norm.

Coupled with these trends, new legislation has significantly increased the powers available to HMRC, giving them a greater access business records, general information, premises and assets to secure evidence in support of their enquiries.  For instance, HMRC now have greater access to a wider range of financial information from the banks and the frequency with which third party information is used to support taxpayer enquiries has increased. 

If you are faced with a tax enquiry, whether in the form of a request for accounting records, a letter asking for a site visit, you will appreciate that this can be an extremely stressful and time consuming experience.  Many people feel that HMRC take the view of “guilty until proven innocent”.  It is therefore very important to understand your rights as a taxpayer, and to have access to the best possible professional advice to deal with this situation in an effective manner.

RJP has many years experience helping clients deal with tax enquiries and representing clients during negotiations.  In many instances, we have been referred to such clients through their own accountants who did not have the right level of expertise to deal with such situations. 

To find out more listen to our podcast with Anne Eager, RJP’s Enquiries Manager dispelling the myths surrounding tax enquiries

See Anne Eager’s video interview with Sunday Times journalist and author of Taxhell.co.uk, Nick Morgan

Contact Anne Eager for more information on ae@rjp.co.uk.