Information posted to the UK government website on 3 August 2017 notes that an online service is now available for appeals which can be made directly to the First-tier Tax Tribunal, such as indirect tax appeals or applications for enquiry closure notices. The online appeal system may also be used in the case of appeals that were made first to HMRC, for example for most direct tax issues, but are then lodged with the Tax Tribunal because agreement cannot be reached with HMRC.
Using the online service the taxpayer can lodge an appeal and receive an acknowledgement with a reference number, and has the option to upload documents in support of the appeal. The taxpayer can at a later date revisit the appeal lodgment if necessary to find further information. As the information is validated when it is input to the system, applications are less likely to be rejected for incomplete or incorrect information.
Taxpayers have the option of using HMRC’s statutory review process before taking an appeal to the Tribunal. If an appeal is not making progress taxpayers may also consider alternative dispute resolution where there is a dispute about the facts and communication has broken down. In this case a third party mediator may help to resolve the impasse.
