Failure To Report SEISS Grants Correctly Causing Delays

According to HMRC, a large number of Self-Assessment tax returns for the 2020/21 tax year contain a range of inconsistencies that relate to the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme ...

This means that HMRC has been unable to process these returns automatically and delays are happening. The Insitute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has confirmed this.

"Many taxpayers have incorrectly reported SEISS income from grants one to three!"

Of course, HMRC is crosschecking tax returns against what they paid out for these grants and so, when inconsistencies occur, automatic processing is unable to continue. It does have the power to correct tax returns where there is an obvious error or omission and an SA302 calculation will be issued to the taxpayer with any corrections on it.

However, if the information has been entered into the wrong box, HMRC cannot correct it themselves. The taxpayer will need to file an amended return. These delays could cause fines or penalties eventually.

So, if you're filing your self-assessment tax return soon, check that you've accounted for your SEISS grants correctly, and put the right amounts in the right boxes.

If you'd like to find out more about anything I've written here, do call me on 01908 774323 or leave a comment below and let's see how I can help you.