The taxpayer in this case unsuccessfully asserted that late penalty notices had not been issued or delivered to him (Burley v HMRC [2023] UKFTT 59 (TC)).
Various administrative technicalities were raised on behalf of the appellant, but these were rejected by the tribunal. In the end, the decision was one of evidence. The FTT was “satisfied, to the appropriate standard, that HMRC directed production of the penalty notices, that the same were produced in the ordinary course of events, and were properly addressed, pre-paid and posted”.
Although the tribunal was clear that it was not questioning the taxpayer’s “honesty, character or integrity”, the FTT ruled that he had failed to rebut the presumption of service, for a variety of reasons (any one of which would suffice individually). As such, the appeal failed and the penalties were upheld.
https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKFTT/TC/2023/TC08701.html
Related content from Claritax Books
In Tax Appeals – Law and Practice at the FTT, tax barrister Keith Gordon analyses some 500 precedents to show how the FTT rules are applied in practice, and how taxpayers may use the tribunal system for appealing against tax decisions.
