Nonsensical letter

The taxpayer appealed against a late-filing penalty in respect of his 2012/13 tax return. He claimed HMRC had not asked him to complete a return but he would do so if HMRC sent a form. The Revenue said it had sent him a notice to file.

The department rejected the taxpayer’s appeal on 20 March 2014 saying “I see that no evidence to date has been received confirming that you did not receive a tax return or notice to file”.

The taxpayer appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) describing the taxman’s statement as a “tautology”.

The FTT said HMRC’s letter was “a piece of nonsense” and “ridiculous to expect the appellant to produce evidence to show he did not receive the tax return or notice to file”.

The tribunal’s presiding member noted the taxpayer had filed returns previously but not every year meaning there was no...