Covid scam HMRC letter through post SEISS 5

reefer37

thought i would see if anyone else has had a scam letter through post claiming to be from HMRC

my partner who is self employed got a letter through post yesterday.

Brown paper HMRC type letter all the paper looks geniue inside etc

then in the letter it advises that they need more info for her to claim SEISS 5. that she will be contacted in the next 10 days between 08:00 and 17:30 the call will be from an unknown number and will ask to provide an email address and then a drop box link so she can show digital copy of everything from id to bank statements etc.

sounds so dodgy to me but when i got in my partner thought it was genuie as was sent through post and looks like normal HMRC stuff. she thought the scams would have been emails and not real letters.

also if you go to HMRC they have a number on there to confirm if genuine letter and number should be on your letter but it is not on this letter.HAHAHAHAHA

ive told her not to answer or give out anything on the phone

so please if anyone else gets a letter like this please WATCH OUT

Jeremy535897

This is exactly how SEISS 4 applicants were checked, so it is probably not a scam. See https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-a-list-of-genuine-hmrc-contacts

"Contact by letter or phone

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme – checks before the fifth grant

In late June 2021 HMRC will send a letter to customers who may be eligible for the fifth Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant. The letter advises customers to expect a phone call from HMRC to carry out a pre-claim verification check.

The letter explains that before the online claim service becomes available, HMRC will call them on the number they gave on their Self Assessment tax return for 2019 to 2020.

The purpose of the call is to check customers’ identity and business activity. During the call HMRC will :

• confirm their email address
• seek their agreement to receive a link by email to Dropbox

Customers will then have two days to upload one form of identity and 3-months’ worth of bank statements."

The letter should look something like this (this is for SEISS 4):

https://www.icaew.com/-/media/corporate/files/insights/tax-news/seiss4-pre-claim-verification-letter.ashx?la=en

reefer37

thanks jeremy 

that letter does look very similar

so i stand corrected.

strange she did not need it to get the SEISS 4 grant so thought why do they need infor for SEISS 5.

i will call HMRC on number below to confirm tomorrow

thanks for the update

Letters

Claiming repayment for Self Assessment

You may receive a letter from HMRC asking you to contact us about your repayment claim. We may ask you to provide extra information. This allows us to check your identity and verify your repayment claim.

You must respond to the letter as instructed so we can make any repayments owed to you as soon as possible.

If you need further support or you’re not sure if the letter is genuine, contact us using one of the following:

• 0300 200 3310 (this number should be on the letter)

• Income Tax general enquiries

Our customer support team will check your records and confirm that the letter is from HMRC.

Jeremy535897

HMRC announced that they were checking another batch of people for SEISS 5. They wouldn't check the same people as they did for SEISS 4.