As with all compliance work, the extent and depth of a tax
credit examination or enquiry will depend on the nature of the case
and the issues involved. The terms “full” and
“aspect” are used in HMRC compliance work to classify
enquiries according to their depth and impact.
Full enquiries involve a searching exploration of the areas
which are fundamental to the integrity of the return or claim, and
often require face to face contact. By comparison, aspect enquiries
are usually relatively straightforward, concentrating on a limited
number of issues, and can normally be carried out by
correspondence.
The term “full” is also used to classify
appropriate tax credit enquiries and examinations. But the tax
credit equivalent of “aspect” enquiries are classified
as
Discrepancy Examinationsand Enquiries. This is because the type of work
which, in tax credits, is appropriate to the aspect approach,
usually arises because of a discrepancy between the claim and other
information held by HMRC. For example, the pay details provided to
HMRC by an employer differ from those notified by the claimant (the
P14 mismatch cases).
The legal powers underpinning examinations are different
from those which apply to enquiries (See CCM Chapter 4 - Opening
the Examination
CCM4090 and
CCM4180). But there is no difference, in
statutory terms, between discrepancy and full examinations, or
discrepancy and full enquiries. They are simply departmental terms
which acknowledge that these different types of Examinations and
Enquiries, require different techniques and are governed by
different Codes of Practice.
