Inland Revenue Tax Enquiry!

Minerva_2

I am in the unfortunate postion of having a tax enquiry! I have sent off all the information that they have asked for, although unfortunately I managed to lose a couple of receipts when I photocopied them, but I did have to photocopy over 100!

What happens now? Although I have been straight with the revenue, I am frightened in case I have made a genuine mistake in my calucaltions or something similar!

I have decided that I am going to get an accountant, in case it all gets too much for me to cope with. How will the revenue view me getting an accountant involved at this stage?

I need advice on how to choose a good one, how much do they normally charge, per hour/fixed fee? How to avoid getting ripped off and over-charged.

Thanks in advance for any advice, a panic stricken,

Minerva

Ganyam

Im no expert, but i have just recently started my own business and had the problem, do i do it myself or get an accountant..

I decided to go for the accountant and asked alot of ppl as i didn't want to be paying a £100 just to sit in the chair.. Anyway i found one that didn't charge for the first 30 mins, and only cost a couple of hundred a year which i thought was resonable..

Getting to the point i wouldn't think the revenue wouldn't realy care as there only bothered in getting money out of you, and an accountant should make sure all your reciepts are correct and that your not paying to much.. :j :j

Savvy_Sue

If you search for accountant on the Small Biz & Charity board I'm sure you'll find a few pointers to finding a good accountant. Not sure if this is your personal tax or a business investigation, but I'm sure the same principles would apply.

elaine373

Try not to panic, they sometimes randomly check accounts.My husband runs his taxi business and was called in once because they were not happy with the petrol expenses. I fretted for weeks about this and in the end they reviewed and added on a bit of tax.(Decided that some of the fuel expenses was travelling to and from work) chill out and be honest. An accountant is a good idea though.Try not to get flustered, you wont be the first person to have lost receipts and you havent done anything fraudulant. worst thing that could happen is that they may not accept what cant be proved. Good luck and let us know how you get on, Regards, Elaine

Al_Mac

Having recently gone through a personal, not a company, revue, I sh$t myself for several weeks over it, I'm not a brave person at the best of times. Spent ages trying to get everything right.

I have now decided to claim only things I can prove. Which takes out all the things we visit, where you can say on the door that you are a tax payer. Will still sign, but not claim.

NT were a big let down, but the bank statement was accepted.

Going to avoid dividends.

Glad the mortgage is offset, so little savings.

My hours, about 40, theirs, unknown, total income to HMG £23!:mad:

Cook_County

The clue to a qualified tax adviser is that she or he must have professional qualifications such as Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA), Chartered Accountant (ACA or FCA) or Chartered Certified Accountant (ACA). Anyone who is qualified must have professional indemnity insurance and undertake continuing education.

Most charge at an hourly rate, but you will need to ask what kind of business they specialise in, how long they have been qualified, their success rate in your kind of enquiry etc.

You will get the best service if you get someone with the kind of experience you need...

Ems!

Minerva, try not to worry too much!! As long as you are honest and up front with the taxman you will find that they can be very reasonable. in my experience, even if an expense cannot be verified (ie you don't have a receipt), as long as it seems reasonable (eg a taxi driver needs petrol) they often accept it, they will sometimes just say that they want to knock the amount you have claimed down a bit - ie so that there is some extra tax due.

If you have made a genuine mistake then obviously you will have to pay the extra tax - but hopefully you will have either no or a very minimal penalty due to the co-operation you are providing and the fact that is a genuine mistake. If it turns out you do owe something and can't afford to pay it all at once they will be co-operative in giving you time to pay as long as you tell them from the outset - don't leave it 6 months then ask for a monthly payment plan!
i hope i haven't added to ur worry with the above - i am just trying to stress that they will be reasonable if you are upfront and genuine.

With regards to getting an accountant... if you are fairly confident person who can put your point accross and it is a relatively straightforward case the you may be best not bothering!! As Ganyam says, some will only charge a few hundred a year , but this is very likely to not include work undertaken during an investigation, which will normally be billed one of 2 ways: hourly rate, or via an "investigation insurance" - for a few pounds a month, some accountants will agree to undetake work on a client's investigation "free" when the situation arises - however this obviously wouldn't apply in your case - can't see Mr accountant being too chuffed with you turning up asking to pay ur £10 for the months insurance ... then - "oh - i am being investigated!!!!"

If i was you I think i would sit tight, wait for your reply from HMRC, then perhaps seek further advice on here, then if it doesn't seem to be going too well go for an accountant then.

The best method of finding an accountant (as with most things) is via recommendations from friends, try asking round to see if anyone you know has a good one - and yes I would go for one who is ACA or ACCA qualified, or a CTA. There will be unqualifieds out there who will be good at their job and charge you less- indeed I know some - but best to be on the safe side and pay that "bit " extra I reckon.

Minerva_2

Thank you all very much for replying. I have a couple of buy-to-let properties and the enquiry is into my expenses claims.

I think that I will sit tight and await their reply and hope for the best. If it looks like I am on a "sticky wicket" then I will get an accountant. I think that long term, an accountant may actually save me money.

I will let you all know how I get on - I wonder how long I will wait for their reply? Not something that I really want hanging over me at Christmas!

Thanks once again for your advice,

Minerva

Robert_Sterling_3

If you get an accountant you will need to give him all the information you would have given to the Inland Revenue. If you have lost a couple of receipts out of 100 it is no big deal.
Tell the Inland Revenue that you have lost two of your receipts.

Ems!

Minerva wrote:

- I wonder how long I will wait for their reply? Not something that I really want hanging over me at Christmas!

I reckon you SHOULD defo hear from them before christmas.(in my experience, it would normally be a couple of weeks after u send in the info - much quicker than the processing of tax returns etc)

falklandfred

The best advice is to sit tight at the moment and wait to see what happens (unless you have something to hide, that is...!). The IR conduct some pretty random enquiries and yours may well be one of them. I have been the subject of two over the years and, whilst I agree that your heart sinks when you see it, on both occasions it has resolved fairly quickly and easily and without an accountant. Save your money for the moment - and if you do need an accountant ASK QUESTIONS - how much they charge, what their charging units are (some charge a phone call as a 15 min unit - extortionate or what), and what you expect from them.
Good luck
ff