HMRC internal review

Introduction

Internal reviews are also known as statutory reviews. These can be used where you have made an appeal to HMRC but are not satisfied with the outcome. In some cases, HMRC will offer you an internal review, but sometimes you might have to request one.

If HMRC have offered you a review of their decision, you can then decide whether you want to accept their offer, or whether you would prefer to take your appeal straight to the Tribunal. You have 30 days from the date of HMRC’s offer of a review to accept it or appeal to the Tribunal.

You can also consider requesting the case is referred for alternative dispute resolution (also known as ADR).

How internal reviews work

The HMRC reviewer will have another look at the case and decide whether or not they agree with the original decision. They will write and tell you the outcome. This should be within 45 days unless HMRC agree an extension with you. Their usual practice is to extend it for a further 45 days, so the review is completed within 90 days.

The outcome might be one of three things:

• the reviewer agrees with you and cancels HMRC's original decision
• they agree with you in part and vary HMRC's decision
• they agree with HMRC's original decision and turn down your appeal

As mentioned above, if the reviewer has not made a decision within 45 days, they should tell you. They might ask for more time. You do not have to agree, but it might be in your interests to do so if ultimately your case is resolved quicker. If you do not agree to allow the reviewer more time, they must give you a notice saying that the review is concluded without a decision being reached and you can then appeal to the Tribunal if you wish.

HMRC's internal reviews are carried out centrally from their Solicitors Office and Legal Services team, by someone within HMRC who is independent of the original HMRC decision-maker. That means the reviewer is not within the management chain of the original decision maker.

What to send to HMRC

If you ask HMRC for a review, you should make sure that you include in your request for a review as much information as you can. You should say why you think the original decision is wrong, and if there is any further information that the original HMRC decision-maker might not be aware of, this is your opportunity to provide it.

For example, if you are claiming that you have a reasonable excuse for filing your tax return late, but HMRC do not already have all of the facts about what happened, explain the situation again. Try to give as much information as you can and, if you have any supporting evidence, send copies of it with your review request (do not send original documents).

Let’s say you spilled a cup of coffee over your laptop computer on 30 January when you were going to file your tax return, so you could not complete it. You took the laptop for repair the next day, got it fixed within a week and then filed your tax return as soon as possible when it was back up and running (in other words, you put matters right as soon as you could).

HMRC in their original decision have said they do not think you had a reasonable excuse as they thought you should have asked a friend or family member if you could borrow their computer; or used a public computer such as at a local library.

In your request for a review, you should send in any further evidence you have. You could send a copy of the repair bill for the laptop as evidence of the problem. Then you could explain that your library does not provide the facilities they suggest and in any event it was closed on both 30 and 31 January as it now only opens on certain days. Furthermore, you think it is not reasonable for HMRC to suggest you rely on friends or family to deal with your private tax affairs. Perhaps also the information you needed to complete your tax return was saved on the computer that was damaged and you needed it to be repaired before you could access it.

Giving such further information could make all the difference to the outcome of the review.

Internal reviews and appealing to the Tribunal

Internal reviews are optional. If you prefer, you can appeal straight to the Tribunal, but normally in direct tax matters you must also notify HMRC before, or at the same time, as doing so.

However, an internal review is worth considering as an alternative way of resolving your dispute, as it could save time and costs of appealing your case to the Tribunal.

If you have opted for a review, you cannot take your case to the Tribunal until the review is concluded.

If you disagree with the internal review

Once the review is concluded, if you do not agree with the outcome, you have a further 30 days, from the date of the review conclusion letter or the expiry of the review period, to appeal to the Tribunal. Following an appeal to the Tribunal you can request that the case is referred for alternative dispute resolution in certain circumstances.

More information

You can read more about internal reviews on GOV.UK.