In Alison & Richard Bradshaw [2018] TC6582 penalties for late filing a non residents CGT return were cancelled: it was reasonable to rely on a conveyancing solicitor to point out a 30 day filing requirement. 

The Bradshaws appealed against the assessments claiming that they had a Reasonable Excuse for late filing:

Judge Thomas agreed that the appellants should have been able to rely on a solicitor to provide them with advice to file a return and the adviser's ignorance of the law gave them a reasonable excuse for late filing.

He did not find anything in the UK/Canada tax treaty that provided any exemption from reporting in the UK.

The penalties were cancelled

Comment

Another conflicting decision as to who should know what and when. Also another case where it seems that HMRC incorrectly calculated tax geared penalties. The couple had made a loss, see Grounds for Appeal: HMRC error

Links to our practical guides

How to Appeal a Tax Penalty

Penalties: Late filing

Grounds for Appeal: Reasonable Excuse

Non-Resident CGT: UK residential property

The Non-Residents' Tax Toolkit

Non-Resident Landlords Scheme

External links

Alison & Richard Bradshaw [2018] TC6582