Too late

Application to the tribunal to accept a late appeal

The taxpayers participated in an arrangement to avoid stamp duty land tax on the purchase of a property. HMRC decided the scheme did not work and assessed them to stamp duty land tax.

After some ‘crossed wires’ in HMRC when two officers wrote to the taxpayers giving them contradictory information on the same day the taxpayers made a late appeal to the First-tier Tribunal.

The appellants contended that the tribunal by acknowledging the appeal allocating it to the standard category issuing a general stay of proceedings and forwarding it to HMRC had in effect given permission for a late appeal. The tribunal said it was inherent in the structure of FA 2003 Sch 10 para 36G(3) that an application for permission to notify a late appeal may be submitted before with or after the...