This would be correct in the case of salary or some similar payment to you.
But tax under/over payment doesn't work in the same way.
HMRC have an absolute right to claim any tax they believe you owe for up to 6 years, regardless of whether you honestly believed you didn't owe it - and tax credits are effectively just lower tax payments.
As far as I am aware, they are treated as "negative" tax assessments. And overpayments of them are treated *exactly* the same way as underpayments of "ordinary" tax.
I believe they can.
Well if they can't show that much, then they would lose at the commissioners if it got that far.
That has nothing whatsoever to do with the situation. Nobody is suggesting that the member of the public is reasonably able to calculate their own tax or tax credits.
It would. Then they would also be liable for penalties and interest.
Of course it is bound to result in errors. But they don't care because (so long as they follow proper procedure) they can always recover those errors.
A very interesting article. Is there anywhere on the net where you can read HMRCs *own* guidelines on what they are to do to comply with the law/rules when an overpayment has been made and they want to recover it?
Dave
No, all they have to show is that you made an error in your claim.
Wrong, what they got wrong was not telling people they were opening enquiries into the claims.
O yes they can! I'm now paying an overpayment back at the rate of £10 per month until well into the next decade. (I am now on pension credit) The WTC office even admitted it was their mistake, but I should have know!
Alex Heney posted
No they aren't. They're administered as benefits.
What do you mean "no"? You mean "yes"! I specifically asked about a situation in which the claimant had made no error.
It is irrelevant what they are "administered as".
Not that it matters, because SS also maintain the right to reclaim benefits overpaid in error.
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