Chartered Accountants
Partnership Taxation Enquiries
Our client is a family-run butchers based in the East of Scotland. Following a four-year tax enquiry with HMRC, EQ were approached by the business owners to assist in bringing the enquiry to a quick, successful resolution. The assertion from HMRC was that the owners were using some of their stock for private use and failing to account for that. HMRC wished to assess the client on six years’ underpaid tax.
How we helped our client
Our Tax Enquires & Investigations team firstly assessed the position and contacted HMRC to ensure that a working relationship was created. HMRC supplied their calculations as to the level of underpaid tax based on the meat used for private purposes by the business owners. EQ quickly established that HMRC’s calculations were grossly overstated – they inferred that our client was not recording the equivalent of 34 burgers per day. We quickly asked HMRC to reconsider as their figures were patently ridiculous and eventually agreed an adjustment which was the equivalent of four burgers per day. A tax enquiry, running for more than four years might have cost our client more than £52,000 in lost tax but our intervention reduced that figure to only £5,500.
The key to enquiries is a good relationship of trust with HMRC, a willingness to discuss matters and a pragmatic approach to settle.
For more information or to discuss further, please contact the Tax Enquiries & Investigations Taxperts.
