woodyinoz

Could somebody please advise as to why I have recieved a Late Tax Return Penalty 2 years after leaving England they say that they haven't recieved my 2004 tax return
It seems as if they have tried contacting me before but they have got my address and not my POBOX address and the guy at the post office obviously couln't match them...
I am however unsure as to how they got my address anyway???????
I would appreciate any advise on this matter
thanks.

Sandra

Did you work at any time in the UK during the tax year ending April 5 2004?

Did you file a P85 when you left?

Did you have any earnings for this time period.

As far as the address is concerned - you never know how they might have got it, as you are legally obliged to give details to the IR many places might have given them what details they had.

And my advice is to fess up fill in the returns and pay whatever they come up with. I last worked in the UK 3.5 years ago and have had to do Tax Returns going back to 2000 and have a heck of a bill to pay including fines for late filing.

The Tax Man will not take moving to Aus as an excuse for non payment or non return of forms. My only consolation was I banked my money during this time so I do have the funds to pay what I owe.

Hope it works out for you

Cheers sandra

woodyinoz

I am sure that we notified everybody concerned when we left the UK. We have never been asked for a tax return for the previous year
I haven't had any earning as I have not been in that country. I will not pay the fine either as they sent everything to the wrong address. I will have to call them tonight and see if they can shed any light on the situation. I am hoping that they have just done the normal and f**** up.

woodyinoz

Just hunted through the files and I have found my P45 from when I left my last job. It clearly says that there was no tax to date due..... so i am now really confused

Sandra

What was the date on the P45 - did it end in the tax year April 2003 to April 2004.

At any time the IR can ask you to fill out a tax return, it is not just to do with income earned it can also relate to interest from Bank accounts, investments etc.

The p85 is your statement you are leaving the UK at that point they may do a calculation then and there and work out if you need a rebate. Them asking for A tax return could be due to the fact they did not know you left the UK and are wondering why you do not have income.

As you say give them a ring and hopefully it is a mix up.

woodyinoz

Thanks Sandra.
My p45 date was the 30th June 2003. I am still that they can fix a penalty when I never recieved any forms prior to this.
I will speak with them later but I recon that fines are fines in this case.
Wish I could remember if I did the p85 now but it all seems so long ago.

Sandra

Ok so you have income for year ending 2004 - they just might be on a wild goose chase they checking you have no other undeclared income. I would suggest you speak very nicely and see if they can waive the fine if you fill in the forms now. I know from experience they will still want the forms filled in and will think there is something dodgey if you say you have no need to.

Ask nicely about the fine as well, but my IR lot just said it wasn't their fault they sent the requests to the wrong address it was ours for not providing it correctly. In law it is our responsibility to make sure the IR know where to contact you.

Best of Luck

Sandra

Also meant to say if you have more than one part of your P45 chances are you did not do a P85 as part of the process is sending in the extra copy of the P45 with the P85 to confirm income for the last year. The P85 is an official declaration you are leaving and have no further tax obligations in the country.

worzel

As Sandra suggests, it looks as if they might owe you £hundreds in tax (less a penalty for being late). You might need to do a tax return to make it happen though.

meelie

My hubby was fined for not completing his tax returns. He had never been asked to do one and had never been sent a form so couldn't understand why he had to do one or why he had been fined. He contested the fine on the grounds that he hadn't received the forms and they waived the fine. Eventually aftr many letters his tax was sorted and the clever tax man sent him a cheque to our address in Australia despite being told to pay it into a UK account! They are bl##dy idiots! Just contest it if you knew nothing of it and didn't receive any forms.

Alan Collett

Note that the late filing penalty in respect of a UK Tax Return is the lower of GBP100 and the tax outstanding as at 31 January following the end of the tax year.

In other words if you submit (say) your 2003 Tax Return today and there was no tax outstanding for the 2002/03 tax year as at 31/01/2004 there is no late filing penalty payable.

Best regards.

woodyinoz

Thanks Allan
I have just spoke to them and they checked their records and our postal address. They are clearing all debts and have just asked me to send in the completed forms from the web site. I owe no tax as I only worked for 2 months part time that year. Who knows maybe they will pay me!!! as if

worzel

You should get money back. You paid tax at a rate that assumed you would work all year. But you probably didn't even use your tax allowance so could get back all of the tax you paid that year.

GinaUK

That's interesting. I hadn't come across that before. All the literature I've seen on this topic mentions the "automatic" penalty of £100.

Do you by any chance remember where you read this?
(Can't see it on the Inland Revenue web site.)

Cheers

Gina

woodyinoz

Well they went to charge me £202.40. this was a fixed penatly charge of 2 amounts and interest... as I said I had not had any prior acknowledgement before this.