- Sandra Krywald, a solicitor, faced issues with her bookkeeping service during and after the COVID-19 pandemic
- She received inaccurate figures from a remote bookkeeper and incorrect advice from HMRC
- Despite making monthly VAT payments and communicating with HMRC, she was assessed for late submission and payment penalties
- The FTT found that Ms Krywald had a reasonable excuse for the late submissions due to unreliable bookkeeping and HMRC’s incorrect guidance
- The penalties were reduced to zero, with the FTT noting special circumstances that justified the reduction
- This decision clarifies the conditions under which a taxpayer can claim a reasonable excuse for late submissions and shows sympathy towards Ms Krywald’s situation
Source: rpclegal.com
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
