Jeffries & Sons v Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (VAT - application to bring late appeal - Martland considered - claim for overpaid VAT on gaming machine takings - HMRC made protective assessment in the context of the Rank Group litigation - effect of wording of protective assessment) [2024] UKFTT 1031 (TC) (14 November 2024)

Jeffries & Sons v Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (VAT - application to bring late appeal - Martland considered - claim for overpaid VAT on gaming machine takings - HMRC made protective assessment in the context of the Rank Group litigation - effect of wording of protective assessment) [2024] UKFTT 1031 (TC) (14 November 2024)

Permission to bring a late appeal was refused because the delay of over nine years was serious and significant, and while there was initially a good reason for not appealing (confusion caused by HMRC's correspondence and the existence of a prior appeal), this reason ceased to apply in 2016 when the prior appeal was withdrawn. There was no good reason for the entire period of delay, and the need to respect statutory time limits outweighed the appellant's strong underlying case and the limited prejudice to HMRC.

Citation
[2024] UKFTT 1031
Parties
Appellant: Jeffries & Sons; Respondents: The Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Jurisdiction
United Kingdom
Judgment Date
14 November 2024
Procedural Posture
VAT Late Appeal Application / First Tier Tribunal (tax Chamber) Application for Permission to Bring Late Appeal
Outcome
Application for permission to bring a late appeal refused.
Legal Topics
VAT, Late Appeal, Protective Assessment, Statutory Time Limits, Rank Group Litigation
Tax Law VAT Late Appeal Protective Assessment Statutory Time Limits Rank Group Litigation

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Parties

Jeffries & Sons

Appellant

The Commissioners for His Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Respondents

Procedural Posture

VAT Late Appeal Application / First Tier Tribunal (tax Chamber) Application for Permission to Bring Late Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether permission should be granted to bring a late appeal against a VAT protective assessment issued in 2013, more than nine years out of time.

Ratio Decidendi

Permission to bring a late appeal was refused because the delay of over nine years was serious and significant, and while there was initially a good reason for not appealing (confusion caused by HMRC's correspondence and the existence of a prior appeal), this reason ceased to apply in 2016 when the prior appeal was withdrawn. There was no good reason for the entire period of delay, and the need to respect statutory time limits outweighed the appellant's strong underlying case and the limited prejudice to HMRC.

Court Disposition

Application for permission to bring a late appeal refused.