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Sometimes it’s not what they say but what they don’t say that’s interesting

30th Sep 2016
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I have to admit I’m not a major fan of HMRCs webinars as they seem to waste a lot of time off topic and the presenters are obviously being kept to a line of content that does not allow for expansion or analysis as they are presenting.

The result is that it seems they are simply reading from a script which we could do at any time ourselves.

What they don’t have control over is the questions put to them by the listeners and the replies are where HMRC staff have to think on their feet and it’s here where you can glean all sorts of information into views and attitudes and none more so than in the questions that don’t get an immediate answer.

The recent webinar on MTD was a case in point and here are some of the questions that were not immediately answered:

Q. How long before voluntary PAYG becomes mandatory?

A. -   

Q. We have real problem with broadband in rural areas.

A.-

Q. Will agents get access to their clients tax account at the same time as you give them access?

A.-

Q. All the benefits that are listed are fine for the taxpayer but HMRC seem to be blocking agents and stopping them having the same level of information as their clients. This cannot be in the interests of the taxpayers. Why is this approach being taken?

A.-

Q. You keep saying it’s the end of tax returns …how is the end of tax returns when sole traders with other reportable sources …foreign, CGT, property and so on …..so these don’t need to be reported on a tax return?

A.-

Q. Please could you define “Quarterly summary” for a small cash based self-employed business owner?

A.-

Q. If Agents do not have access to client’s online digital record how can they see the client’s complete picture and give advice? Lots of clients do not want to do any bookkeeping or reports and they use an Agent to do everything?

A.-

As you see where questions about Agents are concerned HMRC are not sure where we stand or how we are to effectively operate and I’d like to end with a direct quote from Tina Riches article in Tax Journal where she said “Businesses frequently use agents because a business owner’s time is better spent on running their business. Agents will often have expertise that the business owner does not have. Discouraging the use of agents could store up problems for the future, increase costs and frustrations, and potentially reduce the size of the economy and the tax take.”

Nothing to add to this really.

This blog is taken from the ICPA website. Dedicated to supporting and promoting the needs of the general practitioner. You can find us at www.icpa.org.uk or email [email protected] or phone 0800-074-2896.

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