HMRC set to tackle undeclared rental income
HMRC have access to a wide range of data that enables them to be specific and accurate in whom they target for an inspection.
A campaign that began in 2013, and is still in operation, is aimed to significantly reduce the number of landlords that are not declaring their profits from property rental in their self-assessment tax returns.
Originally, the plan was to run the campaign for eighteen months but in light of the result so far it is now expected to run another couple of years, which would make it one of the longest and most targeted campaigns by HMRC in the UK.
A significant number
HMRC records show approximately 500,000 UK landlords file tax returns each year. This compares to an estimated 1.5 million landlords that are expected to earn rental income
A proportion of these would be “off the hook” as technically it is only a requirement to file details on the tax return when there is a profit – some landlords may run at a loss. However, these select few are the minority.
The source of HMRC’s data
There is so much data “out there” in the ether now, there is not much that falls below the radar and HMRC have access to the lot, pretty much.
For this campaign, some source they would be using include:
- Land Registry details
- Council tax departments
- Letting agencies and advertising companies
HMRC have already contacted 50,000 landlords where data doesn’t match to the official filed records. This system will then be duplicated to other suspects.
Figurit help many commercial business owners with filing property information accurately on their annual tax returns. Don’t get caught up in this campaing. Call today to discuss:
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E: info@figurit.com