Sudden demand for 4 years of Tax Returns but I have not worked, nor Self Employedwhy?

belinea2010

Hi

Please forgive me is this is the wrong section for this but as it's Tax or HMRC related I thought this was the best place.

I am not employed in any way and sadly due to health reasons I have not been since 2009, I receive state benefits (which I am not proud of). I have to take high doses of 3 different medications just to function each day. My health varies from day to day from being bearable to fragile.

I live modestly, keep myself to myself and try and concentrate of getting through each day as best as I can.

Two months ago my companion dog of 9 years was diagnosed with a brain tumour and he started having serious epileptic seizures (caused by the tumour). He died in my arms a week ago and I have not been able to address what I am about to describe to you until now because, to be honest, I did not have the mental capacity to do so as my dog was my world and he had to come FIRST. I am going to need a lot of time to come to terms with what happened to him as trying to care for a seriously ill companion who is having sometimes daily serious seizures has messed my head up even more than it already was (I don't expect that anyone here will understand). I have not been able to begin to grieve because these HMRC letters are very distressing and I just cannot deal with this.

Out of the blue about a month ago I had a letter from HMRC saying that:

We have set up a Self Assessment record for you because
you contacted us to register for Self Assessment or
your circumstances mean you need to complete a tax return.

I called the number on the letter and explained to the person on the other end that I receive state benefits due to my health and that I could not understand why I had received this letter. She put me on hold while she made some enquiries and when she came back she said something along the lines of "it's nothing to worry about, every now and then we ask random people to complete Self Assessments. If you receive a S.A. just complete the section on Benefits and return the SA.
I was not happy with this because I have been on benefits since 2009 and benefits are not taxable. HMRC would know this and be able to check with the DWP I would have thought but what could I do?

I then received another letter dated 10th April stating:
It's time to complete your tax return
Tax year 6 April 2013 to 5th April 2014.

I called them again and spoke to a less friendly man who basically said I must complete the S.A. and return it by July 10th.
I tried calling the Citizens Advice and they were next to useless and I didn't get passed the guy who admitted he was in a call centre. He just said to send the letters back with a covering letter explaining that the HMRC have issued them in error.

Last week I received FOUR different S.A. forms that had obviously been photocopied and someone had hand written the details on the top. These tax returns are for the years 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014.

Does anyone have any idea what's going on?
Can't the HMRC check with DWP and not put me through this?

Looking at the S.A. I can't give them the details they want like how much benefit I received in 2011 or any other year as it seems to be constantly changing (certainly housing benefit is) and I can't remember what happened last month let alone a year or so ago.

There used to be organizations you could go to for help with things like this who would act on your behalf and get answers like Community Legal Advice but they all seem to have gone and all that seems to be out there is Cizizens Advice, who as I have said, are no help what so ever.

I really need some advice on how to handle this?

Thanks in advance

Belinea.

quietriot

belinea2010 wrote: »

I was not happy with this because I have been on benefits since 2009 and benefits are not taxable.

What benefits are you on? Some of them are taxable.

belinea2010

Hi quietriot

thanks for the reply.

I receive Income related Employment and Support Allowance plus Housing Benefit?

Coneygree

Something doesn't sound right about that at all, and there has been a lot of self assesment scams going around.

First of all, you have done nothing wrong, so don't get worked up or upset over it. It will get sorted.

Here's the hmrc helpline number 0300 200 3310. Ring these , this if off the official website. Explain what's happened, tell them your situation , and the stress it is causing, and that you would like it resolved immediately.

belinea2010

Hi Coneygree

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated.

Yes thats the number I called when I spoke to HMRC and was told during the first call that it was nothing to worry about and during the second I was told that I need to complete the return?

HMRC, as you would expect, are no help what so ever...

Coneygree

They are not, customer service or help desks in all major companies these days are useless, it's either automated, in another country, or undertrained under motivated staff.

Either way, do not ignore them. You will have to call them. Do you have a friend or relative who could be with you or even ring on your behalf while you are there.

You must explain your situation and say you don't need to fill out self assesment, because from the details you have provided, you don't need to.

Just a question, before your illness were yo self employed at any point.

belinea2010

Hi Coneygree

Thanks for the reply.

Yes I was self employed for a time but that was back in the 90's and all tax affairs were up to date and signed off.

Pennywise

It wouldn't surprise me if it's simply an HMRC mistake. Could easily be that someone there has set up tax returns for someone else and made a mistake with your nat ins number (i.e. swapped a couple of numbers around) so they've set you up instead of someone else. I've certainly had cases like this before and they're easy to deal with once you've actually managed to speak to someone within HMRC with half a brain (sometimes hard to find).

They DON'T send out tax returns to random people. Something has triggered it. As I say, most likely some numpty has put in the wrong NI number.

From the taxaid website:-

"Asking HMRC to withdraw a tax return
If you think you do not need to submit a tax return, for example because all your income is taxed under PAYE and you have no additional tax liability, you can phone HMRC on 0300 200 3310 and ask for the tax return to be withdrawn. If HMRC agrees, this will means that you no longer have to file a return.
You can ask for a return to be withdrawn even after late filing penalties have been charged. If HMRC agrees, you will not need to file the return and any penalties issued for missing the tax return filing deadline will be cancelled.
You will usually have only two years from the end of the tax year for which the return is due, in which to ask for a return to be withdrawn. So don’t delay. If there are exceptional factors, you are on low income, and you need tax returns to be withdrawn for a number of years, ask TaxAid for advice.
HMRC will not withdraw a return if you have been self-employed at any time during the tax year – even if it was only for a very short time and there is no tax owing."

You just have to persevered and phone HMRC again. Tell them exactly what state benefits you are receiving. As said above, some state benefits are taxable, and for some people, their taxable state benefits are high enough for them to pay tax.

None of this will go away, so not dealing with it now isn't an option. The next stage will be late filing penalties etc which will cause you a lot more stress, so you have to grasp the nettle and get it sorted.

Coneygree

Penny wise has it spot on

belinea2010

Thanks everyone

I am not ignoring it and want to get it sorted out but getting to speak with anyone at HMRC is just a joke, I have been on hold now for over an hour.

This is stupid.

Coneygree

Yet they would be straight on the phone to you if you owed em money, just stick with it, it will get sorted, don't worry