RITA4Rent have spoken with HMRC and exclusively obtained the latest figures from the Let Property Campaign. The latest figures report up to 30th June 2016, and these show that HMRC have received £92 Million from landlords relating to past unpaid tax. We can also reveal that 13,000 landlords have come forward under the campaign.
HMRC’s Let Property Campaign was launched back in 2013, and given the level of success, there is currently still no end date.
To recap, the campaign gives all landlords the opportunity to report any past undeclared rental profits to HMRC, pay any tax owed, and benefit from more favourable penalties.
Should you have undeclared rental profits to declare, it is very important to come forward before HMRC come to you, as this will affect the penalties you are faced with.
By continuing to ignore your responsibilities, you open yourself up to the likelihood of receiving an enquiry letter. These investigations can be huge and lengthy, and you certainly do not receive the same benefits as those received under the Let Property Campaign.
One word of caution however, is we have had clients who have approached us, after they have completed their own DO1 notification form, but then have not submitted their DO2 in time to meet the 3 month deadline. What we are seeing in recent months, is a quicker response from HMRC to turn this non-receipt of a DO2 form into a full blown investigation. Therefore, if you do submit your DO1 form to signify your intention of making a disclosure, it is of paramount importance to ensure you meet the 3 month deadline.
What is also key, is ensuring you are claiming all the expenses you are entitled to. Essentially, the higher your expenses, the lower your profits, and as tax is payable on profits, it emphasises how crucial it is to ensure completeness here. You may even find that your expenses exceed your income, and in this instance you would have made rental losses. If this is the case, you may simply withdraw from the Let Property Campaign by telephoning their helpline. Nevertheless, if you are able to withdraw, do make sure you file tax returns in future should this be applicable to you.
At present, you may report on past rental profits up to and including the year ended 5<sup>th</sup> April 2015. Any subsequent transactions would fall under the self assessment tax return system.
As specialist landlord tax advisors, we have prepared many guides on the Let Property Campaign, and this link here will bring you to the various guides we have prepared for landlords.
In addition, do feel to contact us for any advice or assistance with your Let Property Campaign disclosure. We have completed hundreds of disclosures with an extremely high success rate.
Or if you did plan to tackle the disclosure yourself, we do offer landlords a free Campaign template spreadsheet which will help you put your figures together.
For any of your tax needs, please do not hesitate to contact RITA4Rent, specialist property accountants, on Freephone 0800 1 22 33 57 or via our online form by clicking here