Landlords warned over undeclared rental income

News Category: Legal

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Her Majesty's Customs and Revenue (HMRC) are set to crack down on landlords who fail to declare rental income, the Scotsman has reported.

According to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), those who do not declare revenue from renting out property could face being investigated by HMRC.

It has been revealed by the ACCA that some 500 letters are to be issued by the HMRC's compliance unit this week to those self-assessment taxpayers who it believes may be acquiring income from rented property.

Chas Roy-Chowdhury, the ACCA's head of taxation, commented: "Occasionally there will be legitimate reasons why tax has not been declared - in some cases, letting out property does not raise much income and people may feel they are not making a profit which needs to be declared.

"But tax rules for renting out property are confusing. The amount of tax payable depends on the type of letting."

A spokesman for HMRC denied that a tax crackdown was being planned, maintaining that the letters were for the benefit of their landlord customers.

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