Income/Expenditure? (PAYE Underpayment)
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Poiple
Posts: 1 Newbie
in Cutting tax
Hi all,
I have a couple of questions that I hope you can help with....
I work for an elderly disabled man who has been slammed with an underpayment bill for PAYE for his carers (he's currently fighting a payroll company to take responsibility for the debt as he pays them to ensure all taxes are payed up to date and they failed to do so)
The HMRC don't care that there's an on going dispute and potential errors in how much is actually owed, they just want him to start making payments. Despite the fact this has been left to fester without action being taken for at least the past five years (apparently no contact was made about the debt until it was three years old to begin with!) and there have been no letters or phone calls about this issue for over six months to a year.
So question one is - Is there a time limit on how long they can pursue a PAYE debt with an "employer"?
Is there any known way to have it reduced/written off due to his health or because he had entrusted a professional organization to handle the payment of tax on his behalf?
He has tried asking the HMRC these questions and I sat in on the call and heard they are very shady and reluctant to offer any details or advice beyond "pay us something now!"
Because he can't really afford to pay again, HMRC have started demanding he come forward with income and expenditure. He has very little left to live on at the end of each month due to being saddled with a lot of secured and unsecured debt, most of which he's in a debt management plan for. So my next question is, does anyone know what HMRC consider "expenditure"?
He has quite a lot of disability related expenses, as well as a number of life insurance policy payments which when (if) paid out will barely cover paying off his debts, so he wouldn't really be able to cancel them. He also has a large sum left to pay on his mortgage and another charge against his property. I know when it comes to other debts (which Step Change for example) they are quite lenient with what you have to have to live on each month, but I assume HMRC are not quite so gentle about taking every last penny a person has.
He suffers with a number of mental health issues as well as physical disabilities, and all this is making his condition a whole lot worse, so I'm looking for some light at the end of the tunnel, or some suggestion of where to go for help/advice on what to do with handling the debt and what information to provide to properly paint the picture of the dire financial situation he's truly in.
Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I have a couple of questions that I hope you can help with....
I work for an elderly disabled man who has been slammed with an underpayment bill for PAYE for his carers (he's currently fighting a payroll company to take responsibility for the debt as he pays them to ensure all taxes are payed up to date and they failed to do so)
The HMRC don't care that there's an on going dispute and potential errors in how much is actually owed, they just want him to start making payments. Despite the fact this has been left to fester without action being taken for at least the past five years (apparently no contact was made about the debt until it was three years old to begin with!) and there have been no letters or phone calls about this issue for over six months to a year.
So question one is - Is there a time limit on how long they can pursue a PAYE debt with an "employer"?
Is there any known way to have it reduced/written off due to his health or because he had entrusted a professional organization to handle the payment of tax on his behalf?
He has tried asking the HMRC these questions and I sat in on the call and heard they are very shady and reluctant to offer any details or advice beyond "pay us something now!"
Because he can't really afford to pay again, HMRC have started demanding he come forward with income and expenditure. He has very little left to live on at the end of each month due to being saddled with a lot of secured and unsecured debt, most of which he's in a debt management plan for. So my next question is, does anyone know what HMRC consider "expenditure"?
He has quite a lot of disability related expenses, as well as a number of life insurance policy payments which when (if) paid out will barely cover paying off his debts, so he wouldn't really be able to cancel them. He also has a large sum left to pay on his mortgage and another charge against his property. I know when it comes to other debts (which Step Change for example) they are quite lenient with what you have to have to live on each month, but I assume HMRC are not quite so gentle about taking every last penny a person has.
He suffers with a number of mental health issues as well as physical disabilities, and all this is making his condition a whole lot worse, so I'm looking for some light at the end of the tunnel, or some suggestion of where to go for help/advice on what to do with handling the debt and what information to provide to properly paint the picture of the dire financial situation he's truly in.
Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
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Comments
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I'm afraid I can't offer much advice except perhaps to get in contact with Tax Aid:
http://taxaid.org.uk/
They have limited resources so I don't know if they can always help, but aim to help those on low incomes or who are vunerable who have tax problems that they have been unable to resolve with HMRC.Excuse any mis-spelt replies, there's probably a cat sat on the keyboard0 -
Please see my comments in RED
Is he happy and do you want to act on his behalf - if he does and you do he will need to sign a letter authorising you to act on his behalf.Hi all,
I have a couple of questions that I hope you can help with....
I work for an elderly disabled man who has been slammed with an underpayment bill for PAYE for his carers (he's currently fighting a payroll company to take responsibility for the debt as he pays them to ensure all taxes are payed up to date and they failed to do so)
This isnt HMRC`s problem - its his problem with the care providers.
After all the Care providers report the information to HMRC
The HMRC don't care that there's an on going dispute and potential errors in how much is actually owed, they just want him to start making payments. Despite the fact this has been left to fester without action being taken for at least the past five years (apparently no contact was made about the debt until it was three years old to begin with!) and there have been no letters or phone calls about this issue for over six months to a year.
Have you got proof to back this assertion up in the form of letters ?
Has he contacted HMRC at any time in the past to make them aware of the problem ?
So question one is - Is there a time limit on how long they can pursue a PAYE debt with an "employer"?
Is there any known way to have it reduced/written off due to his health or because he had entrusted a professional organization to handle the payment of tax on his behalf?
He has tried asking the HMRC these questions and I sat in on the call and heard they are very shady and reluctant to offer any details or advice beyond "pay us something now!"
Because he can't really afford to pay again, HMRC have started demanding he come forward with income and expenditure. He has very little left to live on at the end of each month due to being saddled with a lot of secured and unsecured debt, most of which he's in a debt management plan for. So my next question is, does anyone know what HMRC consider "expenditure"?
He has quite a lot of disability related expenses, as well as a number of life insurance policy payments which when (if) paid out will barely cover paying off his debts, so he wouldn't really be able to cancel them. He also has a large sum left to pay on his mortgage and another charge against his property. I know when it comes to other debts (which Step Change for example) they are quite lenient with what you have to have to live on each month, but I assume HMRC are not quite so gentle about taking every last penny a person has.
He suffers with a number of mental health issues as well as physical disabilities, and all this is making his condition a whole lot worse, so I'm looking for some light at the end of the tunnel, or some suggestion of where to go for help/advice on what to do with handling the debt and what information to provide to properly paint the picture of the dire financial situation he's truly in.
Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Have HMRC been made aware of his mental health and disability issues IN WRITNG and with evidence ?.
The details of his income & expenditure he *may* need to provide are his income (benefits/state pension/ occupational pension if he gets one) and his outgoings (rent/food/etc).
Provide this info to HMRC and say he cant pay within the timescale they request and they may decide to suspend collection BUT they wont do that until you have provided all the info I have suggested.
Any more questions please post back.0 -
Not clear whether the money is actually owed or not. Some clarity would help. Is it that the money is due to HMRC but that the payroll company didn't tell him to pay it? Or has he paid the money to the payroll company but they've failed to pay it onto HMRC? Or has the payroll company failed to make the necessary submissions to HMRC, so HMRC have raised estimates (called determinations)?
No one will be able to give any meaningful advice without more facts.
If HMRC havn't had the money they're due, then they'll go after him. If he's paid the money to the payroll company who havn't passed it on, he'll in turn need to take action against them.0
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