The fifth SEISS grant is on its way, but the application process has not opened yet. HMRC has not given a definite date on which the claims portal will open other than “late July”.
However, that has not stopped the scammers doing their best to entrap taxpayers who are desperate to apply for this last grant. A number of scam emails are circulating pretending to be from HMRC inviting the recipient to apply by clicking a link in the email. We are warning all clients to check the address the email has come from and do not click on a link in such an email – ever.
HMRC is writing to some self-employed traders who started trading in 2019/20, to check that they are eligible for the fifth SEISS grant. The HMRC letter simply warns the taxpayer to expect a phone call from HMRC on the number that they included on their 2019/20 tax return. Unfortunately, the trader needs to do this verification check themselves, we can’t do it on behalf of our client.
The taxpayer will be asked to confirm an email address to receive a link to a Dropbox account. The taxpayer will then have to upload documents to this account to prove their ID and to provide evidence of trading, such as bank statements. This Dropbox link will remain live for only TWO DAYS, so taxpayers need to act quickly to confirm their ID.
Established traders who have already submitted their 2020/21 tax returns may receive a notice of correction to their self-assessment relating to SEISS grants received in that year, as we explained on 24 June 2021. This notice should be copied to us as the agent, but it may not be.
However, the notice will not say that the taxpayer is permitted to reject the correction to their self-assessment within 30 days of the issue of the notice. This is a serious omission by HMRC, but it doesn’t change the law (TMA 1970 s 9ZB) – the taxpayer can reject HMRC’s figures and we can do so on behalf of our client.
Written by the Tax Advice Network