Tax Credits Claim Denied

FBaby

Sorry read your last post after I posted.

MsBlonde

FBaby wrote: »

So how many hours do you actually do for the company? Maybe they are satisfied with the hours you do for them, it's the rest they are not satisfied with?

I do 30-35 hours for the company. Everything else is an hour here and an hour there, I stated that the company was my main source of income.

MsBlonde

Darksparkle wrote: »

Living wage hasn't started yet so wouldn't be relevant to any check they do.

Have you tried talking to the officer in charge of your check and asking them to explain their decision in more detail?

It means youre asking them to reconsider their decision.

https://www.gov.uk/tax-credits-appeals-complaints/disagree-with-a-tax-credits-decision

I haven't got the decision notice yet, I only just got the letter today, it was delivered elsewhere. Can you talk to the officer in charge? I didn't know that.

FBaby

s for 30 hours a week, I think since working for the small company, I've worked one week at 30 hours, the rest over it...

Actually re-read it Are you saying then that the rest of the time you've worked less than 30 hours then? Did you declare the same hours working for this company than what you've invoiced the company for?

FBaby

Keep cross posting!

Darksparkle

MsBlonde wrote: »

I haven't got the decision notice yet, I only just got the letter today, it was delivered elsewhere. Can you talk to the officer in charge? I didn't know that.

Sorry you say you haven't got the notice but you have got the letter? What letter?

Have you spoke with the officer dealing with your claim?

MsBlonde

FBaby wrote: »

Actually re-read it Are you saying then that the rest of the time you've worked less than 30 hours then? Did you declare the same hours working for this company than what you've invoiced the company for?

I've never work less than 30 hours, the invoices I included showed the dates I worked and the hours I did, I even stated in a cover letter than i do a minimum of 5 hours per day Mon-Sat for said company.

dktreesea

Yes, it is worth following up with them, imho, to find out exactly what objection they had to your business and what further proof they require. You could call them in the first instance, but the call centre people can fluff you around. You may need to write instead.


Does the income you get equate to (net) the NMW for the hours worked? If you claim to be working 30 hours a week, but they only see receipts, of, say, £600 for the first month through your account, then they will value the work at the amount of revenue they see, less the expenses you have told them about, divided by 30*52/12 hours at the NMW.


This seems to be the new approach regardless of whether you are in a Universal Credit area or not. It's like a defacto minimum income floor, their way of working out if the way you spend your 30 hours of work a week is "worth it", if your business is viable.


The other thing they are sceptical of is cash banked into an account. We sometimes have cash takings. The first time HMRC asked us for some info, which we sent off, and then they came out to see us. One of the people had done a fair bit of work on totting all the cash takings up and "analysing" it. They seemed to think the takings were too high for a weekend market which we only go to a few times a year. Their question was about whether it was turnover or just us moving money into the account to make it look like turnover. A waste of their time, since over 90% of our takings are electronic. Once I pointed this out to them (clear from what we had already provided them I would have thought), they moved on fairly quickly.


It was the same with the VAT. They came out, again with a whole load of analysis, that was based on an assumption, that we sold mainly VAT rated goods rather than zero rated goods. And that we sold in a bricks and mortar shop rather than online. They had pencilled in 4 hours for the "audit". They looked at six invoices, one online screen showing the sales breakdown, pronounced themselves satisfied and were gone. I did say to the guy he could have saved himself a trip by just ringing me and asking for an explanation of the VAT and for us to send him the necessary documentation.


Yes, stick with it. They wouldn't have said they were dissatisfied unless the income didn't match the hours you are working. So if you are earning at least the NMW from your self employed work, you need to use that as a basis of your appeal.

MsBlonde

Darksparkle wrote: »

Sorry you say you haven't got the notice but you have got the letter? What letter?

Have you spoke with the officer dealing with your claim?

When I applied for tax credits, they put me instantly on a tax credit examination, I had to provide all this info they laid out... which i provided everything I could seeing as I had only been doing it for just over a month, it was difficult.

I got the letter stating what i did in my first post, from the tax credits examination people. B&C Compliance Operations at the top of the letter.

It states we'll send you another letter which will explain this decision and your right to appeal.

dktreesea

It's not just about invoicing the company. Your account has to show payment for the work as well. They are not just looking at what you say your income is, i.e. the invoice, but evidence of you actually being paid for that work. Since this work is quite new, have the company paid you yet?


Online work is fine, provided they can see the payment for the work you have claimed to have done coming through to you, clearly marked as to the source, i.e. the name of the company(ies)/agency(ies) paying you.