Revenue downplays postal threat

Fewer people are using paper tax returns

Tax payers are highly unlikely to be fined if their self-assessment tax forms are delayed by the postal strikes and they miss the forthcoming deadline.

People filing their tax returns on paper should have them in by next Saturday, 31 October.

A spokesman for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) said fines for late filing "will almost certainly not attract a penalty" if the strike is the real reason.

They face a £100 fine if any tax owed is still unpaid by 31 January 2010.

With two days of postal strikes this week, and more scheduled to start on Thursday next week, the chances are high that posted paper returns will arrive late.

However, HMRC says that taxpayers can chose instead to hand in their forms at any local tax office, and can do so by Monday 2 November without fear of penalty.

Alternatively, people can use the online filing system, which has a later deadline of 31 January next year.

'Sympathetic view'

If people use the postal system and miss next week's deadline, then theoretically they face an automatic fine of £100, assuming that there is at least £100 to pay in taxes by the end of next January.

We will take a pragmatic view and look at their personal history HMRC spokesman

That is because under the rules the level of fine cannot exceed the amount of tax owed.

However, anyone can appeal, and evidence that the postal strike was the reason for the delay, such as a receipt from a post office, will be accepted because the strike counts as a reasonable excuse.

Even without such documentary evidence, the HMRC says it will take a "sympathetic view".

So, if someone has had a track record of submitting their paper returns on time they are unlikely to be fined.

But someone who has usually failed to file on time may not be treated so leniently.

"We will take a pragmatic view and look at their personal history," said an HMRC spokesman.

No deadline change

Chas Roy-Chowdhury of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) said he thought the Revenue would have many more late filers this year than usual.

"I am advising people that penalties will be triggered automatically by a computer if the form is not in on time," he said.

"An appeal will then have to be made in writing, but with proof of postage."

However, the growing popularity of online filing means that fewer people are using the paper system each year.

Last year 2.4 million did so, compared with six million online returns.

This year the rate of online filing is already 20% ahead of the same stage last year, with more than two million computer returns already in.

HMRC is expecting the number of paper returns to fall below two million this year, many of which have already arrived.

One thing that will not change is the formal deadline of 31 October itself.

That is laid down by Parliament and cannot be altered by HMRC.