First-tier Tribunal (Tax)

[2011] UKFTT 89 (TC)

TC00966

Appeal number TC/2010/04373

Whether valid appeal made to HMRC – Whether Notice of Appeal to Tribunal is valid

FIRST-TIER TRIBUNAL

TAX

MAINCOURSE LIMITED Appellant

- and -

THE COMMISSIONERS FOR HER MAJESTY’S

REVENUE AND CUSTOMS Respondents

TRIBUNAL: MS J. BLEWITT (JUDGE)

MR S. BIRD (MEMBER)

Sitting in public at Cardiff on 19 October 2010

The Appellant did not attend and was not represented

Mr P Massey, a Local Compliance Officer, on behalf of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs  for the Respondents

© CROWN COPYRIGHT 2011

DECISION

1.       The Tribunal was satisfied that reasonable steps had been taken to notify the Appellant of the hearing and that it was in the interests of justice to proceed with the hearing.

2.       The issues before the Tribunal are first, whether the Appellant has made a valid appeal to HMRC and second, if there is no valid appeal to HMRC, whether the Tribunal accepts the Notice of Appeal dated 14 May 2010 as valid.

3.       The Tribunal is bound by Section 31A (5) Taxes Management Act 1970 (“TMA”) which requires that the grounds of an appeal to be relied upon must be specified. This requirement has been held to be mandatory in the case of Jacques v Revenue and Customs Commissioners [2006] STC and this Tribunal is in no doubt of that given the clear wording of the legislation.

4.       Furthermore the Tribunal has regard to Rule 20 of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Tax Chamber) Rules 2009 which sets out the procedure for starting appeal proceedings before the Tribunal, and again we have no doubt that it is obligatory to specify the grounds upon which an appeal is made.

5.       The first purported letter of appeal to HMRC dated 8 December 2009 contained no grounds at all for appealing against the assessment made by HMRC on 5 November 2009. The Tribunal also noted that no reasons were given as to why this letter was faxed to HMRC out of the statutory time limit for making an appeal.

6.       A second fax to HMRC dated 22 December 2009 stated the grounds as being “...as stated in HMRC’s letter dated 9 December 2009 that HMRC are not in a position to accept the tax treatment and they wish to take an alternative view as regards the interest.”

7.       The Tribunal believe that the Appellant was actually referring to HMRC’s letter dated 9 November 2009, and found as a fact that the Appellant has wholly misinterpreted the content of that letter. Consequently the Tribunal found that nothing within the fax dated 22 December 2009 could of itself constitute a ground of appeal against the assessment.

8.       The assertion contained within the fax from the Appellant to HMRC dated 22 December 2009 is simply repeated in the Notice of Appeal to the Tribunal. Again this Tribunal did not find that this constitutes a ground of appeal. No further reasons are given within the notice which could amount to a challenge to the assessment made by HMRC.

9.       No further information to support this appeal, either orally or in writing, had been provided to the Tribunal and consequently we find the Notice of Appeal to be invalid and therefore there is no appeal before us.

10.    This document contains full findings of fact and reasons for the decision. Any party dissatisfied with this decision has a right to apply for permission to appeal against it pursuant to Rule 39 of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Tax Chamber) Rules 2009. The application must be received by this Tribunal not later than 56 days after this decision is sent to that party.  The parties are referred to “Guidance to accompany a Decision from the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber)” which accompanies and forms part of this decision notice.

TRIBUNAL JUDGE

RELEASE DATE: 28 JANUARY 2011