Are the days of face-to-face VAT compliance visits over?

My parents both did jobs that are now obsolete superseded by modern technology. I wonder if my old job as a visiting VAT officer for Customs and Excise is going the same way particularly following the recent pandemic. Will all VAT compliance checks now take place from a remote location relying solely on electronic transfers of accounting data and pdf documents by email and occasional telephone or Zoom discussions between a taxpayer and the officer to resolve matters? Is this outcome a wise strategy and what are the long-term implications for both advisers and HMRC?

There is definitely no problem with social distancing if an officer is sitting at a desk in one of HMRC’s regional offices and a taxpayer is 200 miles away. But more importantly is it an inevitable outcome of staffing challenges that HMRC’s VAT verification work – however it...