Pulak Rakshit & Ors v The Commissioners for HMRC
[2023] UKFTT 1044 (TC)
The Wool House Ltd v The Commissioners for HMRC
30 October 2024
[2024] UKFTT 997 (TC)
First-tier Tribunal
HMRC mistakenly refunded SDLT. They later said the money was owed and sent a bill. The company argued the bill was late. The court said the bill was fine because it was issued before the official notice explaining the mistake, and the initial refund didn't cancel the debt.
Key Facts
- •The Wool House Ltd (Appellant) received an SDLT refund of £13,567 plus interest, which was later deemed an invalid MDR claim made out of time.
- •HMRC issued a Closure Notice on 12 January 2022 and a Notice of Assessment on 6 January 2023 to recover the refund.
- •The Appellant argued that the Closure Notice did not constitute a valid assessment under para.13, sched.11A, FA 2003.
- •HMRC argued that the assessment was made when the charge was entered into their internal computer system on 11 January 2022.
Legal Principles
Para. 6, sched. 11A, FA 2003 allows HMRC to give effect to a claim provisionally before a final determination.
Finance Act 2003
Para. 11, sched. 11A, FA 2003 requires a closure notice to amend a claim if insufficient or excessive.
Finance Act 2003
Para. 13, sched. 11A, FA 2003 requires HMRC to give effect to the amendment within 30 days of issuing a closure notice, either by assessment or repayment.
Finance Act 2003
Para. 29, sched. 10, FA 2003 allows assessment to recover excessive tax repayments.
Finance Act 2003
An assessment is made when the relevant officer authorises the entry of its amount into the computer system.
Honig and Other v Sarsfield [1986] BTC 205; Courbally-Stourton v R&C Commrs [2008] SpC 692
Outcomes
Appeal dismissed.
The assessment was made on 11 January 2022, before the Closure Notice was issued, satisfying para. 13's requirement. The provisional refund did not countermand the later assessment.