“Why We Are Writing To You”

​HMRC have been sending out unexpected letters to tax payers, leaving some people upset and unhappy without good reason.  After a spate of calls from disconcerted clients, we decided to give HMRC a call to find out what was going on. By way of background, the letters seemed to suggest that previously filed tax returns were incorrect, which put a question mark over a number of factors in respect of the filing of those tax returns. However, our conversation with the Individual and Small Business Compliance Team at HMRC, soon shed some light on the situation. Essentially, any person that had previously filed a tax return disclosing untaxed interest was being asked to double check the entries made on their tax return. The somewhat patronising letter was also suggesting that perhaps our clients hadn't taken enough care, or had maybe deliberately got their figures wrong! HMRC also confirmed that more than 10,000 of these letters had been sent out, and in our mind most of these will have been received by unsuspecting and honest tax payers. So if you have ever disclosed untaxed interest on your tax return and you receive one of these letters, don't panic, as it's not an enquiry letter from HMRC; it's more like an Unhappy New Year letter from them instead!