Self employed assessment review

claire111

Hi

Can anyone tell me how CSA (2003 scheme) should treat a request for a review due to reduced earnings, from NRP who is self employed sole trader with earnings that vary from month to month ?

Do they say wait until end of tax year ?

Is a s/emp assessment supposed to last for a particular amount of time ?

Thanks to anyone who knows.

DUTR

It's done on the most recent P60. (if self employed get P60 statements).

eve31

I don't know about the CSA system just CMS.

How do CSA get proof of earnings from you? If you send in your tax return in January 2015, this represents earnings from April 2013 to 2014. They will use this to work out your weekly average income. The trouble is this is over a year out of date. And if you haven't earned as much from April 2014-2015 you won't have a submitted tax return until January 2016.

If you have genuinely had a reduction of earnings you should phone them and notify of the the change, once you have proof you could ask for a mandatory reconsideration to backdate it to when you notified them.

I can't see any other way I'm afraid. You have no other proof of earnings apart from your tax return. It's a flaw in the system as then it negatively affects the resident parent as they are considered overpaid. And unlike self employed there is no way of having evidence of real time pay.

Are you in a position to let the resident parent know that you are overpaying as earning less but this won't be taken into account and may end up being backdated.

I know on CMS the change in earnings has to be an increase or decrease of at least 25% before they change an assessment not sure about CSA.

I may be wrong there may be another way to show evidence.