Business Payment Support Service and subcontractors’ gross payment status

At the Pre-Budget Report, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) announced a new Business Payment Support Service to help businesses having difficulty making payments to HMRC. A number of people have asked what effect entering into such an arrangement will have on subcontractors who are registered for gross payment status.

If you have come to HMRC to agree a Time To Pay (TTP) arrangement before the payment is due, then this will not affect your gross payment status. Even if you have entered into a TTP arrangement, you may still get a letter advising you that we have cancelled your gross payment status, as a result of our automated tests. If you receive such a letter, please appeal immediately as indicated in the letter and explain that you have a TTP agreement with us that you entered into before the due dates of the relevant payments. In most cases your gross status will be restored, unless there were other failure reasons unrelated to the payment in the TTP arrangement.