HM Revenue and Customs target landlords

This new initiative by HMRC is designed to uncover those landlords not declaring their rental income on their end of year tax returns.  Letters are being sent out and the advice is, if you receive one do not ignore it.  HMRC hope that response to the initial letter will be positive and so avoid lengthy tax investigations.

John Cassidy, a partner with PKF Tax Investigations, says:  “While HMRC cannot be certain these individuals have made profits and there is no legal requirement to respond to such letters, ignoring such a letter may be counter productive.  Once HMRC has identified a tax risk it is unlikely to let go until the issue is cleared up.

“Over the last few years HMRC has geared itself towards tackling tax evasion and avoidance and it intends to use the information it has to seek out evaders in a systematic fashion across the board.  Those who did not receive a letter this week and believe they may have escaped the Revenue’s grasp should note that this is only a pilot exercise for ongoing interventions that will start later this year.”