UK HMRC Discovery Assessment Rebuttal Letter
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Your Situation
Tell us about the tax year, the discovery assessment HMRC has raised, and the deadline on the notice.
This letter will cite
Taxes Management Act 1970 s.29 + s.29(4) + s.29(5) + s.34 + s.36 + s.36A + s.36(1A) + s.49A + Tooth v HMRC [2021] UKSC 17 + Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 s.11
Your letter will appeal the discovery assessment within the 30-day window, cite the operative TMA 1970 provisions, attack the assessment on the grounds you select (deliberate-intent under Tooth, s.29(5) information-available, statutory time-bar, calculation, original disclosure), request an HMRC statutory review under s.49A and reserve the First-tier Tribunal (Tax) and Upper Tribunal routes.
Tax administration is reserved — HMRC and the FTT (Tax) cover the whole UK. The nation affects routing language only.
UK Self-Assessment runs 6 April to 5 April. Discovery assessments commonly reopen tax years where the ordinary enquiry window has closed.
The 30-day appeal clock runs from this date. The appeal letter must reach HMRC within 30 days.
If a named officer or office reference is on the notice, include it so the appeal reaches the right team.
The aggregate additional tax HMRC says is due under the discovery assessment. Penalties (if any) are normally raised separately under Finance Act 2007 Schedule 24.
Tooth v HMRC confirms "deliberate" requires INTENT — not carelessness. Tooth also confirms there is NO doctrine of staleness; only the statutory time limits apply. The s.29(5) information-available test is the most commonly successful technical defence.