Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is the tax authority of the UK and is responsible for collecting taxes, paying the child care benefits, enforcing tax and customs law with all their powers.

Independent Review

 To resolve a tax dispute with HMRC for any irrelevant request of documentation or investigation process, or if you disagree with the HMRC decision about the indirect tax such as VAT,  you have the right to appeal in writing to HMRC.  Ensure that you appeal within 30 days of notice sent by HMRC of their decision. HMRC may offer you a review of the case that could be an internal process (Alternative Dispute Process) and is carried out by another HMRC officer who was not previously involved in your case.

The First-tier Tribunal

 And if you still do not agree with HMRC after the review, you can appeal the First-tier Tribunal (Tax), who will decide which of four categories your appeal to the Tax Tribunal falls into:

Default paper appeal to the Tax Tribunal

Default paper appeals to the Tax Tribunal are handled by the First-tier Tribunal to have a detailed review of your documents submitted by you/your representative and HMRC, based on which the decision would be made. Hence, you need to ensure that the documents submitted are well constructed, and have all the necessary and accurate information and reference to case law and legislation

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Standard and complex appeal to the Tax Tribunal

The standard and complex appeal to the Tax Tribunal are similar in the hearing but the difference is that in such cases, the matter that is dealt with is much complex and is time-consuming as compared to the standard Tax tribunal. The HMRC would be given sufficient time for the preparation of the case, and to collect a significant amount of paperwork. It includes collecting the evidence, case law documents, and other relevant documents that are needed for reference as the part of hearing in both standard and complex tax tribunal. These processes helps in preparing witness statements, evidence, and detailed brief for presenting before Tribunal. The hearing of the appeal may well take a minimum of 6 – 9 months.
The First-Tier Tribunal Tax is liable to handle the appeals appropriately against some of the decisions made by HMRC:

• Income Tax
• PAYE Tax
• Cooperation Tax
• Capital Gains Tax
• National Insurance Contributions
• Statutory Sick Pay
• Statutory Maternity Pay
• Inheritance Tax VAT
• Excise duty
• Customs duty