Making a complaint to HMRC
Taxpayers may find themselves in a position where they need to make a complaint to HMRC. Complaints can relate to many different issues such as unreasonable delays, mistakes and poor treatment by HMRC’s staff. There is a factsheet published by HMRC entitledComplaints that has recently been updated and which provides further details.
Taxpayers that wish to make a complaint should in the first instance write or speak to the person or office they have been dealing with. If the complaint is not resolved, or the taxpayer would prefer not to discuss the issue with the person or office they have been dealing with, a complaint can be made directly to a complaints handler by phone or by mail.
If the response is unsatisfactory a further request can be made for the complaint to be looked at again by a different complaints handler who will take a second look at the complaint and then provide a final response. Taxpayers that are still unhappy with the response can ask the Adjudicator to look into the matter. If they are unhappy with the Adjudicator’s decision it is possible to contact an MP to ask for the matter to be referred to the Parliamentary Ombudsman.
There is a separate procedure to be followed by taxpayers that disagree with a decision of HMRC. In such cases the review and appeals process should be followed.
With immediate effect HMRC will no longer send a copy of the complaints factsheet to agents who complain about Self Assessment or Income Tax. However, HMRC will include instructions in any written correspondence as to where the relevant factsheet or other relevant information can be found on their website.