The Association of Tax Technicians have announced that HMRC issued the first wave of Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) compliance letters last week. The action comes as HMRC moves past it’s transaction review phase of the scheme.
The initial set of letters, which were due to arrive on doormats from 18th August, will be asking questions about the validity of claims made. Some of the main areas for incorrect claims will be due to miscalculations or claims for employees that did not qualify.
HMRC will be focusing their efforts on fraudulent claims and not cases where the employer have made an innocent error, insisting that it is those who have abused the system who their compliance activity is aimed at. More details will be shared by HMRC in the coming weeks.
Agents of employers who receive the letter should also receive a copy. On the occasions where an authorised agent is not in place, employers should take the letter to their agent should they have one.
If after a review an employer believes they have incorrectly made a claim, the should contact HMRC immediately to avoid an penalties being applied. There are deadlines in place for disclosures, these are as follows:
- 90 days after the date the employer received the grant they were not entitled to
- 90 days after the date the employer received the grant that they are no longer entitled to keep because their circumstances have changed
- 20 October 2020.
To provide more information on how the penalty schemes work, HMRC have produced an information sheet on how the penalties will be applied.
Should you feel that you may require a review of any claims you have made, please do not hesitate to contact us for a free initial discussion at info@stseurope.co.uk or 01704 891676.
