VAT option to tax – progress update

In recent months we have received numerous reports from our members of continuing and excessive delays in the time it takes for HMRC’s option to tax national unit to respond to notifications. With examples taking upwards of 40 working days to receive a response and HMRC acknowledging a peak of 30–60 days, we have sought reassurance that they are committed to improving response times for taxpayers soon.

We understand that HMRC are aiming to reduce waiting times to 15 working days by mid-November. We shall continue to monitor this and ask members to provide feedback of where waiting times are improving or if delays are still causing difficulties.