Too much work

The taxpayer company was one day late submitting its VAT return for the period 12/12 making it the business’s third default. HMRC imposed a surcharge at 5% of the tax due.

The firm’s director explained that her daughter had fallen ill during Christmas while in Austria which forced a delay to a return to London.

The director had to carry out a major project on her return to the UK putting great demands on her: the deadlines were tight and she had to work through the whole of January with little time off.

The First-tier Tribunal decided the taxpayer had a reasonable excuse for the late-filed return. Her daughter’s illness and the subsequent delayed return from overseas – creating pressure to complete a work assignment – could not have been foreseen.

The taxpayer’s appeal was allowed.

It is difficult to predict the outcome of reasonable...