family member tax arrears (again!)

mrsS_2

a few weeks ago i posted about a self employed family member who had not submitted 04/05 or 05/06 returns so had not had any assessments or paid any tax.

well the revenue have now sent him a letter saying that they are going to apply to the commissioners to ask for the £60 penalty to be applied.

I have a couple of questions:
1)is this £60 per day PER return or £60 per day in total?
2)if his wife rings up and explains why he hasnt sent in the returns (basically because of an accident in late 2005) will they stop the application?
3)if they do go ahead with the charges, when will they start-ie from the date the commissioners agree to the charge (if so when- letter is dated 1st May?) or will they back date them to the date the returns should have been in?


sorry to be so long winded but the replies i received last time were really helpful. thanks in advance

dejongj

As far as I understand it is per return, but also need to apply per return...However don't let it get to that, do your family member a favour and file the returns immediately...And don't talk to us but the Revenue to get this sorted asap as the costs will go up very quickly....For the sake of a couple of hours of form filling do it now! Even if he can't, get someone else to do it or ask for help from the Revenue to get it done....

ctm_2

The £60 penalties are per return per day, and the commissioners will specify how many days they can be charged for. By now there will be the 1st and 2nd £100 penalties for late filing of the 2004/05 return, and the 1st £100 penalty for the late filing of the 2005-06 return.

The best thing to do is for your family member to write to HMRC explaining what has happened, and fill in the returns and send them in as soon as possible.

dejongj

Each situation is different, but HMRC seem decent enough to me...I got a total shock just over a month ago when I got a statement and bill for over £6k in late penalties, fines and interest dating back 6 years....Got it sorted by filling in some late SA forms, all the penalties and interest adjusted (not removed but the same effect for me!) and actually they owe me now nearly £3k which was confirmed today....So from initial shock, upon which I immediately called the recovery unit to a total clear slate and getting money back! It is possible to be human, just don't 'hide' be open, honest and stay in communication...