Underpayment of PAYE

[walt jabsco]

This is in respect of is tax calculation for the tax years; 2010/2011,2011/ 2012, 2012/13. The calculation suggests that I have underpaid tax for the whole of this period - this equates to £6k

In February 2011, I changed jobs moving from the one NHS Trust to another - On arrival I handed in my P45 and had Part (1A) returned to me, with the Trust keeping the rest of that document. I have my section of the original of this document.

I am a Nurse and have no knowledge or expertise in taxation processes and therefore throughout this period had no reason to believe that my tax affairs were not in order. It was also my understanding that the Trust was operating the correct code number, and had no reason to think otherwise.

I can also confirm that I have never received at any time a notice of coding (P2) from HMRC and it was not until I received the letter from the tax office assessment in January 2014 that I realised anything was wrong. My tax code also changed and was put right at the beginning of tax year 2013/14, but again I did not receive any notification from HMRC or my employer of any new tax code number. This again is an indication to me that the Trust (or HMRC) failed to operate PAYE correctly as I was under the impression my tax code could not be changed without notification

I have written to HMRC as I believe the underpayment in question arose through a failure by my employer or HRMC to operate PAYE correctly and I am not fully responsibly for this.

I have received their reply today stating they have investigated, and I am liable for this payment as I did not hand in my P45 on changing jobs in January 2011 (which I did and still have my section of this document a proof)

I am also unsure how they have come to this conclusion as they have had no contact with my employer as part of their investigation – this has been confirmed by my employer and HMRC when I rang them today.

I understand I am responsible for my tax own affairs and have not formally complained – but as state, I am no expert and assumed all was ok. So in essence I need advice on how they have come to a conclusion with what looks like a poor investigation and what options are open to me ?

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated

Best wishes

[ostell]

Re: Underpayment of PAYE

Unfortunately you are responsible for any underpayment of tax. If your tax affairs are normal then I can't see any reason that you should not have been paying the correct amount of tax because if there is no P45 you would be defaulted to the basic tax code. HMRC will tell your employer, usually just before the start of the tax year, what your new code for the year will be. You should also get a copy of the notice.

HMRC do most definitely make mistakes. A couple of years ago they decided that I had state pension of something like £320,000 a year. When I was actually paid my works pension half of it was deducted for tax (regulations do not permit them to take more).

Get back onto HMRC and ask for a calculations of how they come to the figure that they have. Get hold of your payslips from when you started this job and check what coding your employer was using. Retrieve, if you can, your annual P60 notices of pay and tax paid.

[CYNthesys]

Re: Underpayment of PAYE

Ive won against HMRC for my daughter on 2 occasions. HMRC wrote off the underpayment as they were the result of errors of HMRC's own making

Can I suggest you read up about ESC 19, and maybe read this thread that I started
http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/...-underpaid-tax

[walt jabsco]

Re: Underpayment of PAYE

Thanks both

[enquirer]

Re: Underpayment of PAYE

I have written to HMRC as I believe the underpayment in question arose through a failure by my employer or HRMC to operate PAYE correctly and I am not fully responsibly for this.

If the error is demonstrably your employers, then you can apply to have your liability set aside, in which case HMRC looks to the employer to make up the difference. I used to work for the NHS and am only too well aware of how incompetent (and not infrequently, dishonest), NHS payroll departments are.