Zafari, R (On the Application Of) v Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs [2024] EWHC 3014 (Admin) (28 November 2024)

Zafari, R (On the Application Of) v Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs [2024] EWHC 3014 (Admin) (28 November 2024)

The correspondence from HMRC, specifically the letter of 30 September 2022, did not amount to a clear, unambiguous representation that the claimant's late amended tax returns would be accepted. Therefore, no legitimate expectation arose, and it was not unfair for HMRC to refuse to accept the returns. Even if such a representation had been made, HMRC did have the legal power to accept late returns, but the absence of a clear representation was determinative.

Citation
[2024] EWHC 3014 (Admin)
Parties
Claimant: Rajab Zafari; Defendants: The Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
28 November 2024
Procedural Posture
Judicial Review / Final Judgment
Outcome
Claim dismissed
Legal Topics
Legitimate Expectation, Discretionary Powers of HMRC, Amendment of Tax Returns, Statutory Time Limits, Judicial Review Procedure
Administrative Law Tax Law Public Law Legitimate Expectation Discretionary Powers of HMRC Amendment of Tax Returns Statutory Time Limits Judicial Review Procedure

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 3 Authorities cited 17 Party arguments 2
Sign in to unlock

Parties

Rajab Zafari

Claimant

The Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Defendants

Procedural Posture

Judicial Review / Final Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether HMRC's correspondence gave rise to a legitimate expectation that late amended tax returns would be accepted
  2. 2 Whether HMRC had the legal power to accept amended tax returns outside the statutory 12-month period
  3. 3 Whether fairness precluded HMRC from refusing the amended returns

Ratio Decidendi

The correspondence from HMRC, specifically the letter of 30 September 2022, did not amount to a clear, unambiguous representation that the claimant's late amended tax returns would be accepted. Therefore, no legitimate expectation arose, and it was not unfair for HMRC to refuse to accept the returns. Even if such a representation had been made, HMRC did have the legal power to accept late returns, but the absence of a clear representation was determinative.

Court Disposition

Claim dismissed