Rory Mullan KC and Ross Brikbeck acted for the taxpayer in its appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Redmount Trust Company Ltd v HMRC [2023] UKUT 68 (TCC)). The central issue concerned whether an enquiry had been validly opened into a return which was not required to be made. The Upper Tribunal dismissed the appeal holding that the SDLT administration machinery allowed HMRC to open a valid enquiry even where the return was strictly voluntary. The Upper Tribunal also consider that there are no time limits for issuing a closure notice once an enquiry is opened. It did not consider arguments as to the effectiveness of the underlying arrangements.
The full judgment can be accessed here.
