Warning! Cannot pay SA tax at Post Office

Warning! Cannot pay SA tax at Post Office

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We have just been over to the Post Office to pay 31 January Self-Assessment.  They refused to take payment.  Apparently Post Office have a 'new rule' that they will not accept cheques for over £10,000. 

Anyone else come across this?  Would have been nice to be forewarned.

Replies (23)

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Portia profile image
By Portia Nina Levin
25th Apr 2015 18:16

(No subject)

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By bharatbhai
22nd Jan 2015 14:47

Warning! Cannot pay SA tax at Post Office

Yes we have just found this out too!

Frustrating as we have tried to do this - but are now posting to HMRC - hope they will take the money as the clients have always relied on us - Paying over the interenet is not possible when you are paying large sums!

We are doing more for less as tax offices no longer collect at their local offices which are disappearing fast!

 

FRUSTRATED OVER WORKED

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By Mick Milne
22nd Jan 2015 15:08

comical

they make it difficult to register and set up a business/HMRC account in the first place

now they make it more difficult to pay over tax due....

and they wonder why some people don't bother....

frustrating indeed.

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RLI
By lionofludesch
22nd Jan 2015 15:14

Plan

Could be a plan to collect more interest and surcharges.

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By bernard michael
22nd Jan 2015 15:26

The more difficult they make it the more interest @ 3% they charge

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By carnmores
22nd Jan 2015 15:29

Oh Portia
And here's me thinking you had given it all up. Is there a rehab centre for sarcasm

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RLI
By lionofludesch
22nd Jan 2015 15:30

Looking Forward

I'm looking forward to the day that the Government want taxpayers to spend the money for them as well as collect it.

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By Marion Hayes
22nd Jan 2015 15:31

Giro system

is being amended for a lot of customers. I saw one statement last week that wouldn't accept cheques at all from Next.

Why couldn't you pay it at the bank instead?

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Replying to jcace:
By jon_griffey
22nd Jan 2015 16:00

Cheque payable to Post Office

Marion Hayes wrote:

Why couldn't you pay it at the bank instead?

The Post Office have always insisted that the cheques are made payable to Post Office Ltd - indeed as instructed on the SA demands.  If a client has asked us to pay their SA demand and given us a cheque payable to the Post Office (before going on holiday), and they refuse to accept it, you can't then take it to the bank.

It is unacceptable to find out in the last week of January that you can't pay your SA using one of HMRC's suggested methods.

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Replying to chrisgreen83:
Portia profile image
By Portia Nina Levin
25th Apr 2015 18:17

(No subject)

Thanks (4)
Replying to dejaneiro2005:
By jon_griffey
23rd Jan 2015 17:48

Not the case

Portia Nina Levin wrote:

jon_griffey wrote:

It is unacceptable to find out in the last week of January that you can't pay your SA using one of HMRC's suggested methods.

Leaving everything until the last week in January, when you know the client will be on holiday, is a poor show.

 

Well that's not the case.  If the client leaves clear instructions as to when they want it paid in their absence, that is down to them.  They would not thank us for paying it early and bouncing their cheque.  They are entitled to pay it on the due date using a prescribed payment method.

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By carnmores
22nd Jan 2015 15:37

PS
Btw I agree some people masquerading as accountants are in danger of giving the Luddites a good name

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By Rachael White
22nd Jan 2015 15:40

Looking into this

Will report back when I find out  more. :)

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Euan's picture
By Euan MacLennan
22nd Jan 2015 15:54

Paper payslip

And if you don't have a paper payslip, because HMRC did not send reminders in the post, you cannot pay in at a Post Office (or bank) anyhow.  The payslips you can print off the HMRC website are only for sending cheques by post to Bradford.

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By petersaxton
22nd Jan 2015 17:18

I'm sure it's not John's fault

I had one client who asked if I could pay his tax bill and then include it on his invoice. He does live in Australia but I saw it has an additional unnecessary complication.

Another client took the figure I gave her a long time ago and sent me a cheque and totally ignored various transactions by HMRC in the mean time even though they sent her a revised amount payable by 31/01/15. She sent me a cheque payable to HMRC and I sent it to HMRC and told her she needed to pay more and she then asked me to attach the cheques together and sent me another cheque. I had to post that cheque as well.

With another client HMRC owed a client some money and refunded it and at the same time decided they couldn't redo her PAYE coding for a few years ago and asked for payment instead.

Post Office don't meant the new rule on their website and HMRC don't mention it on their website. I think both websites are the place to put any changes.

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By Marion Hayes
25th Jan 2015 10:50

Warned

Have just looked at HMRC site and it does warn about the £10,000 payment limit.

 

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Replying to johngroganjga:
By petersaxton
25th Jan 2015 11:49

I looked on Thursday and it didn't mention it

Marion Hayes wrote:

Have just looked at HMRC site and it does warn about the £10,000 payment limit.

They must have changed it later.

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RLI
By lionofludesch
25th Jan 2015 12:00

Update

Maybe they read this thread.

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By Rachael White
29th Jan 2015 14:02

Mystery solved

It's due to a Santander rule and not HMRC. Check out the response here.

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Portia profile image
By Portia Nina Levin
25th Apr 2015 18:17

(No subject)

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Replying to Tax Dragon:
By Democratus
29th Jan 2015 15:27

You know it's bad when all PNL says is one word...

Portia Nina Levin wrote:

Bankers!

summed it up nicely.

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By User deleted
29th Jan 2015 14:11

Great rule

I think it's a great rule. Without it I'd not get the repeated enjoyment of chuckling over Portia's first post :)

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By carnmores
29th Jan 2015 14:29

i see from the Sunday Times

that a number of HMRC cheques have been intercepted and cashed at post offices!

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