How long does it take to get a tax rebate?

thriftymanc · 1 July 2007 at 1:02AM

I started a new job in January, and from the start of my employment through to the end of the tax year I was put on an emergency tax code (the Inland Revenue's explanation for this is that they didn't have 'enough information', my explanation for this, having P45s covering my every move since August 2005, is that they're lazy).

Anyhow, I know full well I've been overtaxed so I wrote to my local tax office about 6 weeks ago, as advised by Inland Revenue when I called them a couple of months ago, and haven't even had an acknowledgement that they received my letter... and I have no idea how to follow it up, as the number for my local office actually takes me through to a national number who have no idea if my local office has received my letter or not. Considering I gave them every possible method of contacting me, they could have at least let me know they'd received my letter. Is it normal for it to take this long? Or should I consider it lost en route and send all the information through again? Maybe I sound like I'm being impatient but 6 weeks seems quite a long time; to be fair I only know one person who's tried to get a tax rebate this way but he received his cheque about 10 days after sending his letter!

milkydrink · 1 July 2007 at 1:14AM

I think thats a fairly long time.
Write again, but make sure you state that its a second attempt.
Were you woirking between April 06 & Dec/Jan 07 somewhere else?
Was your tax code 5**L, but always on a week/month one basis?

LozBingley · 1 July 2007 at 1:39AM

thriftymanc wrote: »

I started a new job in January, and from the start of my employment through to the end of the tax year I was put on an emergency tax code (the Inland Revenue's explanation for this is that they didn't have 'enough information', my explanation for this, having P45s covering my every move since August 2005, is that they're lazy).

Anyhow, I know full well I've been overtaxed so I wrote to my local tax office about 6 weeks ago, as advised by Inland Revenue when I called them a couple of months ago, and haven't even had an acknowledgement that they received my letter... and I have no idea how to follow it up, as the number for my local office actually takes me through to a national number who have no idea if my local office has received my letter or not. Considering I gave them every possible method of contacting me, they could have at least let me know they'd received my letter. Is it normal for it to take this long? Or should I consider it lost en route and send all the information through again? Maybe I sound like I'm being impatient but 6 weeks seems quite a long time; to be fair I only know one person who's tried to get a tax rebate this way but he received his cheque about 10 days after sending his letter!

I was on the wrong tax code from April this year. After ringing the tax office and answering a few questions and telling them that I didn't in fact have 2 jobs :rotfl: they sent out a new tax code in a few days and I got a rebate in my pay

You can also ask them, while you are on the phone, that you would like a review of your tax paid (for upto the past 6 years) and they should send you out a record of employment form to fill in. It should only take them about a month to review your past years pay and send out rebate cheques

Your local office is not always the office that deals with you tax. It all depends on which tax office your employer is registered to. This can usually be identified off your pay slip and is usually a 3 digit code prefixing your employers tax reference

if its not on there talk to your pay office up and ask them for it, they should also be able to tell you which tax office they are with.

Hope this helps

chibo82 · 1 July 2007 at 1:44AM

I got my tax back within a month. I can't remember what the form was called but you should be able to find it online, or go to the Tax office. Fill it in and hand it in with your p45, or send it yourself if they give u an envelope.

Annando · 1 July 2007 at 5:30AM

You need to send in a P50 form that you can download from the inland revenue website, and send in your P45s and P60 etc with it. If I am not mistaken it is the first page of the P45 that you need to send in.
I sent my in in January by recorded signed for etc... Never got an acknoledgement from them and called them back 6 weeks later, they told me they didn't even know if they had got it (!!!!?????!!!!!!!!) and was probably there somewhere only they were swamped with work and had only started opening the mail they had received at the end of December 2006! (I called them middle of March). Called back again in April, apparently I had sent it to wrong address (sent it to address in my last revenue thingy) so they had to send it to correct department, so how to allow time for correct department to receive it and review it. Called back at the end of May as still no news... Got a "Oh yes, sorry this should have been dealt with ages ago, I don't know what happened...you will get cheque in the post shortly...first got a letter about after a week and 3 weeks later finally a cheque.
Sincerly hope you have better luck!

milkydrink · 1 July 2007 at 9:59AM

I would start phoning.
I type all letters like that & save a copy on my PC, always a good idea.

System · 1 July 2007 at 10:42AM

It normally takes 4 to 6 weeks for a rebate to be issued depending on how much post they have on hand. They never acknowledge receipt of letters basically because of the volume of post they receive and the cost to the taxpayer if they did do that. I would send letters to them recorded delivery.

You will only be asked to complete a P91 or P92 employment history form if there are any gaps in your record which HMRC can't account for ie previous employer, you or benefits agency didn't tell them your circumstances had changed.

Unfortunately HMRC have decided, supposedly to improve customer service, that individual staff will no longer have their own allocation of employers, and hence their employees, to deal with. Anyone can deal with any post and the taxpayer can no longer ring through to the person dealing with their case and instead get through (if they are lucky) to a telephone unit within their tax office.

BTW HMRC used to have to respond to post within 15 working days. That is now increasingly difficult to achieve with staff having been moved to telephone units or been told they are "Pre-surplus or Surplus" and either moved to TCO or let go.

LozBingley · 1 July 2007 at 3:29PM

thriftymanc wrote: »

I definitely wrote to the right office, I already called the Inland Revenue to ask and they gave me the address to write to. It's just the fact they haven't let me know. For all I know they haven't received my letter - or they did and they're ignoring it - or they did and they're going to do something but they're just taking their time! Knowing my luck, if I write another letter to them and post it on Monday, I'll get a reply to my first letter on Tuesday :rolleyes:

I don't think I really need a record of my tax though - I only had one job prior to my current job and I already received a record of all my earnings and tax from that job when I left - and I have my P60 from the start of my new job which details everything, so there isn't really anything else!

OK another idea here

Fill out a P46 with your name, address and NI Number and give it to your employer as they fill the rest in. Your emploer should have some P46's or you can download and print it off from here -> http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/forms/p46.pdf

LozBingley · 2 July 2007 at 1:22PM

thriftymanc wrote: »

What would I need a P46 for? I thought that's what you're meant to fill in if you start a new job and don't have a P45? Sorry if I'm being dense!

You can use the P46 to request the correct tax code

Its a declaration to say that you have no other job and the Tax Office are forced to act on it - so its an official request form.

You are trying to kick the Tax Office into action so its worth doing.

LozBingley · 2 July 2007 at 9:20PM

thriftymanc wrote: »

I'm on the right tax code as of the start of the new financial year, I'm just trying to claim tax back for the end of the previous financial year. I called the Inland Revenue again today and they advised me against filling in a P46 as I've been in my job for 6 months and it will only confuse matters - the man I spoke to said I should only fill it in if I'm starting a new job without a P45 so I can't fill one in and send it off now as I'm already working and on the correct tax code.

LOL Oops - Thought this was all about you being on the wrong tax code now

So did you not ask about getting a review for last year while you were on the phone to him?

Minimods · 2 July 2007 at 10:09PM

I have been waiting 3 months!! Only just got an acknowledgement of my first letter last week, asking for my P60. Phoned them and they say they haven't even got to opening the letter that contains my P60, sent 2 months ago

Leicestershire tax office by the way.

How long does it take to get a tax rebate?

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