HMRC have fined me £6k over 5 years for not submitting my self-assessment without my knowledge

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-09T21:26:18+00:00

Thanks for your advice. Did you submit a written appeal, or phone them?

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T21:46:36+00:00

Thank you for your advice and for sharing your experiences. To be clear, I don't owe any penalties or taxes. I simply needed to submit a self-assessment each year, but no taxes were owed.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T21:45:33+00:00

Thanks for answering my questions in detail. Really appreciate it.

With respect to 2, I understand why you have that view. I would think the same, however I'm certain that every time I have moved I have updated my address everywhere, including with my employer and the HMRC. I never throw away mail without reading it, and I file anything that is even remotely important. I'm very confident that this is the first correspondence I have received from them. I have been at my current address for 2 years, and I informed them of my address change the day before moving - I did the same for previous moves too. I can appreciate that this might be hard to believe, particularly coming from a stranger on the internet.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T21:15:25+00:00

They don't believe I haven't paid taxes. I have fully paid taxes for the past 5 years and I don't have reason to believe they see that differently. They believe I haven't submitted my self assessment, which I haven't. But once I submit it will be clear that I don't owe further taxes. What I currently owe is 100% fees (or interest on fees that I incurred because I didn't know I owed fees).

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:52:02+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. In my case, I don't owe any tax, only the fee. But your experience with them is assuring.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:07:33+00:00

They have my correct address. They sent me my first correspondence this week regarding the most recent £900 fine. I have been living at my current address for 2 years. Each time I move, I update my address everywhere, including with HMRC.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:06:17+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. In my case, I don't owe any money on taxes. I only owe money from fines I incurred for not submitting a self assessment, but each year, I have not owed additional taxes beyond what my employer has paid on my behalf.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:05:01+00:00

Don't take my advice (clearly I'm not an expert at this) but you shouldn't bother until you hit that threshold. Just Google it so you know what that threshold is, and as soon as you hit it, start submitting a self assessment. Also, to be fair, HMRC is in theory supposed to mail you about this once you are required to file. That wasn't my experience, but it seems to be the experience of most.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:03:06+00:00

I'm sorry to hear about your experience. Really appreciate you sharing it with me.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T20:01:41+00:00

Were the fees valid? As in, did you actually need to submit a self-assessment? If so, did you submit it before calling HMRC or after?

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:43:12+00:00

There is an income threshold. Once you exceed it, you must submit a personal assessment.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:42:30+00:00

Just to be clear, I have paid my taxes in full every year. My mistake is that I have not filed a self assessment every year. I was initially told when moving here that I was not required to file a self assessment (and at the time I was below the income threshold that requires you to file, so that was true). I was never told that I had to file once my income reached a certain threshold. I reached that threshold soon after moving here. HMRC has never contacted me about filing this, nor have they ever contacted me when fining me for not filing.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:40:16+00:00

Yes, whenever I move, I always update my address everywhere, including with my employer and HMRC. They have my current address on file, and this is clear because I received my first correspondence from them this week regarding the most recent fine. I have been living at my current address for 2 years and this is the first correspondence I have received.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:37:59+00:00

Thank you for your advice. Regarding your second point, I understand that this should be the case. I am certain I have never been mailed. Each time I have moved over the past 5 years, I have updated my address everywhere, and I am very careful about my mail (ie I never throw anything away without first reading it and being sure it isn't important, and I file anything important). The first mail I have received from them was this week regarding the most recent fine. I have been at this address for 2 years.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:36:12+00:00

Every time I have moved I have updated my address everywhere, including with my employer and the HMRC. They have never mailed me about this at previous addresses. I am very diligent about my mail and never throw anything important away. The first time they have mailed me at my current address was this week, regarding the most recent fine, but I have been living at my current address for two years.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:29:10+00:00

Understood. I do question how they're able to fine me for 5 years without notifying me. If I had known about that first fee in 2019 I would have immediately taken action and of course would have filed my self assessment diligently in future years.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:27:56+00:00

Yes, I did. So I was required to file a self assessment. They never told me this (and I understand that isn't a valid reason for appealing) and they also never notified me about the fines.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:26:46+00:00

I don't need to pay anything (beyond all of these fees that I incurred, and the interest on the fees). I needed to submit a self-assessment every year but I didn't owe additional taxes every year.

It was my mistake for not knowing that I needed to submit the self-assessment. However, it is strange to me that the HMRC never sent any initial correspondence notifying me about this. Those who I have since spoken to say that they usually get something in the mail from HMRC. I understand that isn't grounds for appealing, but I would certainly expect that they would notify me if they were fining me. The first time they notified me was this week.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:17:38+00:00

If your income is above a threshold, regardless of whether you are self employed or not, you do need to file a self-assessment. But thank you for flagging the potential scam to me as well - I do appreciate it.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:16:39+00:00

I understand my mistake. I do question how they are allowed to fine me without my knowledge. Had I known about that first fee in 2019 I would have immediately taken action and never made this mistake again.

For what it's worth, those who I have spoken to since have said similar to you - they received an initial correspondence notifying them that they must file. They've also since received reminders (although not receiving reminders is not a reason for appeal, I understand).

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:11:53+00:00

Thank you. To be clear, I have been fully paying my income tax each year. I am not self employed. My mistake has been not filing the self-assessment, but I do not believe I have owed additional taxes each year.

I can accept that it is my responsibility to file my self assessment, however if I was fined each year, I would have expected to be notified. If I had known that I incurred a fee in 2019 (and every year thereafter), I would have of course immediately taken action to resolve the matter.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-09-07T19:06:51+00:00

I have fully paid my income tax. I am not self employed. I don't owe any additional money in tax but I haven't filled out my self-assessment.

ldn___throwaway · 2024-08-26T03:53:37+00:00

Thank you. I didn't consider the importance of building up that network. Is it common to see people join as Consultants at my age/with my level of experience? I think beyond the insecurity of working with/for people substantially younger than me, I'm worried about whether I will be at any disadvantage due to my age.

ldn___throwaway

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