Self Assessment filing deadlines

The Self Assessment online service was partially disrupted on 31 January 2008. The service also ran slowly at times on 1 February 2008.
In response to those problems, HMRC announced that any return (whether online or paper) received by midnight 1 February 2008 would be treated as filed on time.

HMRC also explained that where users experienced problems with the SA service on 31 January 2008 or 1 February 2008, and were unable to file by midnight 1 February 2008, they would accept claims for “reasonable excuse” in the usual way. This means they will remove any late filing…

CIOT welcomes step in the right direction on domicile

The Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) welcomes any clarification concerning foreign domiciliaries (non-doms) which enables advisers to advise their clients upon the impact of the proposed legislation which is effective from 6 April 2008. The new announcement in the form of a letter from Dave Hartnett, HMRC acting Chairman, is certainly a step in the right direction.

The CIOT had serious concerns about retrospection, discrimination and the penalising of trusts compared with personal ownership. The letter from Dave Hartnett appears to address many of those issues and is therefore very welcome.

Emma Chamberlain, Chairman of the CIOT’s Succession Taxes, says:…

ICAEW welcomes extended self-assessment deadline as HMRC site goes down

The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW) has urged HMRC to properly investigate the failure of its online self-assessment website with the site being down for part of today – deadline day. The crucial collapse comes at a time when more and more people are being encouraged to file online.

Paul Aplin, Chairman of the Tax Faculty at the ICAEW, said:

“Many people leave it until deadline day to file their self-assessment return but they rightly expect that the online system should work on this most important of days. They should not be punished by a fine…

HMRC Website Crashes

During yesterday (31 January 2008) morning and early afternoon, users trying to access the Self Assessment Online section of the HMRC website were confronted with the message ‘Online Service Temporarily Unavailable’.

Yesterday, lest we forget was the deadline for the submission of tax returns. Anyone who failed to submit their returns after the date faced a potential £100 fine.

Around 3.6 million people filed their returns online this year, up more than half a million on 2007. HMRC also said that around 104,000 people successfully completed their transaction on the site before the crash occurred.

Helpfully, HMRC was also kind…

House of Lords rules in landmark VAT refund case

The House of Lords has ruled in a landmark VAT refund case, Condi Nast Publications Limited. The decision challenged the manner in which the three year cap was introduced by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). It is likely that HMRC will issue a Business Brief providing advice to businesses wishing to make a claim for overpaid VAT.

Potentially this decision affects most businesses, particularly those that have had claims for overpaid VAT rejected due to the three year cap. In addition, businesses that have held back making a claim due to the three year cap should now consider submitting a…