Revenue outlines service reduction for share support – is this the thin end of the wedge?
HMRC’s Share Schemes Services Unit have written to their customers outlining the reduced level of support that they can expect as the annual share returns are about to be submitted – to the same deadline as P11Ds. They say:
- They prefer email as they cannot guarantee being able to answer the phone
- Copies of scheme rules must be sent with queries as HMRC has virtually nothing on file
- They have only three inspectors reviewing share scheme documents, compared with ten only a matter of years ago
- Correspondence is taking up to six weeks to turn around
They see one of the solutions to these problems, which are not going to abate, being the potential for scheme rules no longer to be approved by HMRC with employers simply taking professional advice.
One wonders what other radical service initiatives will begin to bite on employers as part of the huge reduction in departmental budgets. The decision to close 130 tax offices in March and the impact on access to tax enquiry centres has already caused consternation amongst civil service unions and taxpayers.
Kate Upcraft
Payroll writer and lecturer
ISIS Support Services Ltd
kateupcraft@btconnect.com
