Be reasonable or face the Revenue’s wrath
Date of Issue: 11th June 2008
A financial expert is urging people to take extra care with their tax returns in future – or face a tough new system of penalties.
A spokesperson at local accountants Bates Weston, says carelessness in preparing forms could soon prove very costly. This is because people will be automatically ‘fined’ unless they can show they took reasonable care to get things right.
Anyone who makes a hash of their return will be assessed to see whether they’re crooked or just incompetent.
They warned that taxpayers can expect to pay up to 100% of all under-declared tax in penalties.
“Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to declaring your dues to H M Revenue & Customs,” they said.
“Get it wrong and you will face automatic penalties depending on how much care you took in preparing your returns. How close you get to the 100% will depend on whether you are careless or deliberately conceal your errors.”
They added: “It is possible to have the penalties reduced if you assist in the disclosure of any mistakes or omissions you have made.
This can be done by telling the tax office directly, providing reasonable help in dealing with the under-assessment, or allowing tax office officials to access records to check that everything is fully corrected.
It should be stressed that the taxman will credit you with taking reasonable care if you call their helpline and take advice which subsequently may turn out to be incorrect!”
The new penalty regime will affect most taxpayers from the year ending the 31st March 2009. For more advice on any of the above issues you can contact Wayne Thomas by calling 01332 365855.
For further details, please contact:
Bridget Charlton, Marketing Manager
Email: bridgetc@batesweston.co.uk or telephone 01332 365855
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