The FTT has refused to allow a late appeal where the length of delay was serious and significant and where there was no good reason for the delay (Butt v HMRC [2023] UKFTT 295 (TC)).
The appeal was almost 11 months overdue and concerned penalties of more than £60,000. The FTT ruled that the prejudice caused to the taxpayer if the late appeal was not allowed to proceed “must undoubtedly be taken into account”. Nevertheless:
“In my view, Mr Butt has not shown that the prejudice to him that will follow if his appeal is not allowed to proceed outweighs the serious delays for which there was no good reason, the prejudice that would be caused to HMRC and the public interest in appeals being conducted efficiently and at proportionate cost, and for statutory time limits to be respected.”
https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKFTT/TC/2023/TC08766.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.
