HMRC to send letters to millions due refund after tax 'mistakes'

Nearly eight million Brits could be getting some of their taxes back this year and will be alerted to this by HMRC with a letter. Sent out every June, P800 forms are set to bombard doormats this tax year with sensational news for their recipients.

The research by finance specialists RIFT looked at historical data to predict how many people are expected to receive the letter this year revealing they could be owed a tax return due to mistakes in the system which caused them to pay more tax than they were meant to.

In 2015, seven million forms were sent out affecting approximately 26.5% of PAYE employees that year and with a rise in PAYE taxpayers this year, 26.5% would be the equivalent of nearly 7.6 million people. In the vast majority of cases found by the specialists, P800 impacts PAYE employees rather than self-employed taxpayers.

Managing director of RIFT, Bradley Post explained the rising number of people due tax refunds saying: “HMRC’s PAYE system is an extraordinary machine of tax collection, but it isn’t perfect and millions of mistakes are made every year. However, HMRC’s internal check and balances system means that it often spots these mistakes in hindsight and does all it can to ensure people are either refunded, or top up what they owe.”

He urged people to keep an eye on their post for the potentially “very good news coming your way”. The expert also noted that while HMRC easily detects the simpler cases, some more complex taxpayers may benefit from “appointing some tax refund experts to ensure that they receive every penny that is owed to them”.

So what do you do if you’re on the receiving end of a P800 letter from HMRC? Receiving this letter can mean you have over or under-paid tax and the balance needs