HMRC has issued some guidance for a taxpayer trying to get tax relief on their pensions.
The individual contacted the tax body over X to follow up after writing a letter to the organisation about their tax relief.
They asked: “I sent a letter approximately two months ago confirming my pensions contribution for last year in order to receive tax relief.
“I still haven’t received a response and there is no sign of any communication being logged in my account. Was the letter received?”
The group apologised for the wait and directed him to an online tool where he could find more information.
A representative sent him a link to this page with information about when you can expect a reply from HMRC after contacting the group.
The tool can be used to follow up queries about several topics including:
- Child Benefit
- Corporation Tax
- Employers’ PAYE
- Income Tax
- National Insurance
- Self assessment
- Tax Credits
- VAT.
A person will need to claim tax relief on their pension contributions if they pay income tax at a rate above the basic 20 percent rate and their provider claims the 20 percent for them at source.
Other cases where you will need to put in a claim include if the pension scheme is also not set up for automatic tax relief and if someone else pays into your pension.
A person can get 20 percent tax relief on contributions from income taxed at 40 percent for income tax, or 25 percent relief on income taxed at 45 percent.
This can be done via a self assessment tax return, or a person can call or write to HMRC to put in a claim, if they pay income tax at 40 percent.
Labour has set out its plans to open up pension investments to deliver better returns for pension savers.
A pensions bill was announced in the King’s Speech but experts have warned this overlooks the key issue of contributions being too low.
Richard Parkin, head of Retirement at BNY Investments, said: “The key issue for UK pensions is that of adequacy. Improving investment and reducing costs is helpful but if there’s not enough being saved in the first place, they aren’t much help.
“We need a plan for how we’re going to increase pension contributions from their current levels.”
For the latest personal finance news, follow us on Twitter at @ExpressMoney_.
