self assessment late tax return for auntie who is 90

[Mexican cuties]

so just in a nutshell, our auntie who is now living near us in assisted living, had a £250k savings policy which was a higher interence account. she had a £3k tax bill last year which was paid, this high interest saver is now on lower std interest rate to go towards her care.

just received a notice saying she hasnt completed a self assessment, i have tried to do it on line but as she is 90, has no passport, drivers licence or photo id, so wont let me, have spent ages on various websites, hmrc telephone numbers, have downloaded the self assessment form, can only assume its from some of her investments. should we just go to a financial tax expert to help, or can any of you lovelies help. she needs this like a hole in the head, currently in hospital after being ill.

any help or advice what the hell we do, would be so grateful, thank you peeps

[alscar]

Mexican cuties said:

so just in a nutshell, our auntie who is now living near us in assisted living, had a £250k savings policy which was a higher interence account. she had a £3k tax bill last year which was paid, this high interest saver is now on lower std interest rate to go towards her care.

just received a notice saying she hasnt completed a self assessment, i have tried to do it on line but as she is 90, has no passport, drivers licence or photo id, so wont let me, have spent ages on various websites, hmrc telephone numbers, have downloaded the self assessment form, can only assume its from some of her investments. should we just go to a financial tax expert to help, or can any of you lovelies help. she needs this like a hole in the head, currently in hospital after being ill.

any help or advice what the hell we do, would be so grateful, thank you peeps

Bit different scenario but some similarities when I had to act for my Aunt as her LPA.
In a nutshell she owed around £2,500 in tax but wasn’t aware of self assessment and ignored all letters so that was the end number - I never found out what was the first figure.
She had been ill with dementia for some years and wasn’t even living in her own house.
Got no where with phone lines / chat lines so ended up emailing the then CEO / MP in charge with the request to pass this down to a team to look into.
I was contacted by a member of the complaints dept and we went from there.
She was then taken off SA , I agreed to submit future numbers each year and the entire bill up until then was waived.
I should point out that they had also appointed bailiffs in the meantime so given the circumstances I think they realised that was probably a step too far.

[Mexican cuties]

thank you for the heads up, its ridicolous, talk about it being impossible, we have poa for health and wealth, will see if that makes a difference , if i can speak to an actual human. just been on hold for hours, and cut off 5 times whilst on the phone to the hospital for an update!!!

[alscar]

When I did the email it was a Jim Hera but I think he has now left - his replacement is I believe something Marks but you should be able to get his email easily enough.
Just be polite and suggest that if he passes the email down the chain you would be really grateful.
I think trying to solve via phone is not going to aid your blood pressure.

[Panamax]

How was her tax return filed last year, triggering the tax bill?

You may find the so-called "Short" return will cover all the necessary ground.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67e...

[alscar]

alscar said:

When I did the email it was a Jim Hera but I think he has now left - his replacement is I believe something Marks but you should be able to get his email easily enough.
Just be polite and suggest that if he passes the email down the chain you would be really grateful.
I think trying to solve via phone is not going to aid your blood pressure.

In case you go this route try these.

John-Paul Marks’s email address is [e-mail].

Deputy Chief Executive and Second Permanent Secretary, Angela MacDonald can be emailed as [e-mail].

[Mexican cuties]

thank you for your help, i think the bank have notified the tax office due to her £250k high interest, dont touch for a couple of years account. shes never ever done a tax return or assessment, its mad

will look into all of the above thank you

[LeoSayer]

Do you (or anyone else) have a Power of Attorney for your Aunt? This will be of great help if you are planning to help her with her finances.

To make life easy for yourself, find a local accountant who can probably deal with all this in a few hours.

[Mexican cuties]

thank you leo, yes we did get the poa for health and finance done officially, will get on this tomorrow, one less thing to tick off, and we just heard she is in a side room in a ward, and i have another cancer phone call tuesday whilst they decide what they are going to do, just seems one thing after another at the moment.

thank you all, such a stressful time already, think sunday looking better weather wise, time to get the toy out for a blast

x

[Sheepshanks]

Mexican cuties said:

...can only assume its from some of her investments...

^This bit - do you know details of all of her income and investments? You can't really go filing tax returns on behalf of someone else if you're not as sure as you can be that you've captured everything.

That said, £3K sounds maybe a little high as on the interest from a £250K fixed term account - suggests £15K of interest, but the tax could be skewed if the interest has taken her into a higher tax bracket. Over £10K you're required to register for self-assessment - otherwise HMRC bill people automatically.

[Callerton]

As already said, I'd suggest getting a local accountant.
They will know the best way to approach HMRC. By now, HMRC's automted systems will be in penalty mode & they will know the best way to seek to get them cancelled. Hopefully their fees will be less than any such penalties.
As well as getting the tax side off your shoulders, this will also give you some breathing space to deal with all the other things that will inevitably be coming to light.

[Mexican cuties]

thank you all, another notice today, so have emailed the contacts given previously, flippin cancer surgery is for thursday, so am quickly looking for a local accountant, as this is all just too much at the moment.

Thank you all again

Jules

[Mexican cuties]

update, from email details had a call pretty sharpish, the lovely chap mark is calling my husband back when he is sat with his auntie tomorrow to help get this st sorted, so thank you all, and you alscar, one big thing to tick off before op on thursday - next job update the goddamn will!!

jules

[alscar]

Jules , I see your profile says Bucks.
I’ve used Dux Advisory ( previously trading as Seymour Griffiths ) in Aylesbury as our accountants for personal tax for the last decade or so if that’s of any use.

[Mexican cuties]

thanks alscar, thats really helpful, do you know a decent solicitor to re jig a will,

[alscar]

I’ve used Horwood and James and also Kidd Rapinet in the past but not for quite a while but both have been around for years.
My last Solicitor retired before Parrott and Coales went belly up !