What is a tax enquiry?
An HMRC tax enquiry is an official review conducted to ensure that an individual or business has paid the correct amount of tax. This process involves examining tax returns, accounts and other financial records to identify any discrepancies or underpayments. An enquiry can be triggered randomly or due to specific concerns and businesses and individuals may be asked to provide additional information or clarification about their financial activities.
Dealing with HMRC’s procedures
If HMRC are launching an enquiry into your tax return, you’ll receive a letter from them detailing what HMRC requires you to do and what information you need to supply. If you have a representative or tax agent who filed your return, HMRC sends them a copy of the letter, additionally explaining the legislation being used to open the enquiry. It’s a good idea to engage us at this stage so we’re with you from the start.
Our tax enquiries team will
- Review HMRC’s request and explain the implications in clear, understandable terms.
- Gather and prepare the necessary documentation to ensure compliance with HMRC’s requirements.
- Communicate directly with HMRC on your behalf to provide accurate and timely responses.
Reason behind the enquiry
Most tax enquiries start because HMRC holds information that suggests that not all the income or gains were reported or there is a high risk that the return is incorrect for some reason. The enquiry can be into certain aspects or the whole tax return. For example, it might concern an offshore bank account, holiday home, company car or even medical insurance. Our team has seen every possible kind of enquiry and is adept at managing any situation.
Different kinds of tax investigation enquiries
HMRC is a vast organisation and has highly trained experts dealing with a whole range of enquiries, including:
- Aspect enquiry – focuses on a specific part of a tax return, such as income, expenses or reliefs.
- Full enquiry – a comprehensive review of an entire tax return, usually when HMRC suspects significant errors or discrepancies.
- Random enquiry – selected at random, regardless of any apparent issues, as part of HMRC’s compliance checks.
- Discovery assessment – initiated when HMRC finds new information suggesting undeclared income or errors outside the usual enquiry window.
We also have experts highly trained in dealing with these enquiries. In fact, we’re rarely asked for help on an enquiry we’ve never seen before. We have decades of experience, so we know how HMRC operates. We’re used to digging down into the details, asking the right questions and bringing each case to a successful conclusion.
If you’d like to talk to us about a tax enquiry, don’t hesitate to get in touch with team lead, John Hood.
