Our mission is to:
‘Target for help and information those least able in the community to afford to pay for advice and make a real difference to their understanding of the systems of taxation and related benefits whilst working to make them more equitable and accessible for their needs.’
Since 1998, LITRG has been working to improve the policy and processes of the tax, tax credits and associated welfare systems for the benefit of those on low incomes. Everything we do is aimed at improving the tax and benefits experience of workers (employed, self-employed and agency workers), pensioners, migrants, students, disabled people and carers.
LITRG works extensively with HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), HM Treasury, Revenue Scotland, Scotland Office, the Welsh Government as well as other Government departments, local authorities and devolved administrations. We provide comment on proposals and put forward our own ideas for improving the system. Too often tax and related welfare laws and administrative systems are not designed with the low-income user in mind and this often makes life difficult for those we try to help.
LITRG also works with a number of other charitable organisations through our sub-committee and groups. We do this by:
- Providing comprehensive information, guidance and support to taxpayers and tax credit claimants and their advisers
- Providing the most comprehensive, up-to-date primary source of information and guidance for taxpayers, tax credit claimants and their advisers on tax, national insurance contributions and tax credits via www.litrg.org.uk.
- Publishing regular news updates on areas of interest to our website readers.
- Providing support for tax credit advisers via our award-winning www.revenuebenefits.org.uk website.
- Helping students understand their tax and tax credits through our dedicated website www.taxguideforstudents.org.uk.
- Offering guidance, support and help to disabled people, their carers, families and support workers who choose to take on a personal assistant to help with their care needs. Our dedicated www.disabilitytaxguide.org.uk website is the only website that explains all of the tax and national insurance consequences of becoming an employer and supports people through the process step by step.
- Supporting other charities and organisations by providing tax information for their websites, training for their staff and running tax and tax credit workshops.
Campaigning work
- Encouraging government agencies, primarily HMRC, to produce the very best information for all taxpayers, especially those on low incomes.
- Analysing the interaction between the tax, tax credits and benefit systems to understand potential interactions and how changes in one system may have an effect elsewhere.
- Researching particular tax areas that may be giving cause for concern and writing reports recommending change.
- Examining Finance Bills and similar tax legislation for provisions which may adversely affect the low income population, providing briefings on the legislation’s effect on this group and then proposing alternatives.
- Monitoring operational developments within HMRC, DWP and other related Government departments which may affect those on low incomes.
- Encouraging people who are in those constituencies to feed to us their day-to-day experiences of the tax and related benefit system.
- Testing by ’mystery shopping’ whether the services provided by HMRC and related government departments are as promised.
- Sitting on numerous tax and benefit consultative groups and putting forward the perspective of those who cannot afford to pay for advice.
- Promoting the work of tax charities via the Bridge the Gap campaign and encouraging professional tax advisers to give their time pro bono to such charities; we have supported TaxAid, the first of the specialist charities; and we set up Tax Help for Older People which provides specialist help to low-income pensioners.