Late appeal allowed

The taxpayer applied to appeal out of time in respect of assessments for 2003/04 to 2005/06 issued in June 2009 and a closure notice for 2006/07 issued in August 2009. The assessments were estimated and in respect of undeclared rental income.

HMRC admitted they had a letter dated 13 August 2010 from the taxpayer’s accountant informing the department that his client wished to appeal and explaining why the application was late. The Revenue had not said whether they would accept the late appeal.

The First-tier Tribunal decided the letter should be taken as an open appeal and that taxpayer should be allowed to appeal because the assessments were not only estimated but also likely to be excessive. The taxpayer could be made bankrupt if they were “simply confirmed”.

The tribunal noted the taxpayer and his accountant had prepared figures for the years in question. It...