Revenue says e-filing fine is only 'speculation'
The Inland Revenue says no final decision has been made on a proposed £3,000 fine levied on employers that do not file their tax returns electronically by prescribed dates.
The £3,000 fine is set out in the provisions of the Finance Bill, Clause 131/132, and follows the government’s 2002 Budget proposal that employers with 250 or more employees file electronically by 2004/05 and those with 50 or more e-file by 2005/06. It will then become a universal requirement for all individuals to file online by 2010 for the 2009/2010 tax year.
But a spokesperson for the Revenue told AccountancyAge.com: ‘No final decision has yet been made on fines. [Where they are implemented], they will be appropriate and proportionate.
‘There are sanctions of up to £3,000 for companies not returning P11D forms – this is assumed to be the absolute maximum for employers.’
Furthermore, she said the emphasis would be on ‘helping employers get it right’ and any sanctions would be lenient in the early years.
‘They will only be put in place once the company has consistently neglected to file electronically,’ she added.
The proposal for e-filing is set out in the 2002 Budget, following consultation on the Patrick Carter Review of Payroll Services, (published in the pre-Budget) which called for ‘greater use of information technology to help employers manage the task of dealing with payroll.’