TERMS & CONDITIONS

Terms & Conditions

Thank you for your instructions to provide you with accountancy services

I. Members in Practice of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants ("CIMA" or "the Institute") subscribe to the promotion of high standards, ethical awareness and best practices. As part of those standards, engagement terms are issued and agreed upon prior to any work being undertaken.

II. This letter has been prepared following discussions with you and, together with service offered schedule, sets out the terms on which our services will be provided. Please read all the information carefully and contact us if you have any concerns or require clarification. 

III. In this letter, "we" and "us" and "our" relate to this accountancy practice and "you" and "your" relate to you, the client 

2. Scope of Services

2.1 Our services will be provided by Tajinder Dhuria FCMA and we will advise you of any proposed change. The services to be provided, timescales and fees and are listed in Service offered schedule    

3. Responsibilities

Our responsibilities are to:

3.1 observe the Laws of CIMA.

3.2 keep and maintain records of work completed and make them available to you upon request. 

3.3 provide regular reports on the progress of any work being completed on your behalf.

3.4 raise any issues or concerns that may be found during the term of the engagement.

3.5 return any information owned by you within 90 working days upon the termination of the engagement and once payment for work carried out by the practice has been made.

3.6 keep records in compliance with Data Protection and Money Laundering legislation. In particular, we make you aware that the data controller is Keep The Taxman Happy Ltd and that in order to carry out the services of this engagement and for related purposes such as updating and enhancing our client records, analysis for management purposes and statutory returns, legal and regulatory compliance and crime prevention we may obtain, process, use and disclose personal data about you. We may also retain personal data about you for longer than is required under Money Laundering legislation.

 Your responsibilities as the client are to: 

3.7 provide the proof of identity information and business details as requested by us to comply with anti-money laundering regulations.

3.8 ensure that records of your business activities are correct and maintained to meet the requirements of regulatory authorities.

3.9 disclose all relevant information to enable us to complete the work within agreed timescales as set in Service offered schedule. 

3.10 allow full and free access to financial and other records held by yourselves or third parties.

4. Ethical conduct 

4.1 All CIMA management accountants work within the framework of the CIMA Code of Ethics (www.cimaglobal.com). The code requires accountants to comply with the principles of integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour.  

4.2 As CIMA management accountants we have a duty to observe the highest standards of conduct and integrity, and to uphold the good standing and reputation of the profession. 

4.3 The duty of a professional accountant is not exclusively to satisfy the needs of an individual client or employer. In complying with the ethical requirements of the CIMA Code of Ethics the professional accountant is obliged to act primarily within the public interest. 

5. Fees

5.1 Our fees are explained in Service offered schedule. It lists the services we agree to supply. Any additional work required which is not covered by these terms will be agreed upon with you and will result in a new Service offered schedule being issued.

5.2 Payment of fees rendered by invoice are due within the number of days as mentioned on the invoice from the invoice date. Interest may be applied to any overdue accounts at a rate of 3% above the Bank of England base rate. Where payment has not been received, we reserve the right to withhold services, documents and information, and have the right to cease to work on your account, and to terminate the engagement if payments are unduly delayed. 

5.3 Any expenses incurred whilst working on your behalf will be charged and appropriate records will be kept and will be available for inspection. Such expenses may include the use of meeting rooms and other facilities, internal printing, courier charges, and international but not national telephone calls.

6. Holding Client Monies

 6.1 Client money is held in an account separate from the practice. Interest will only be paid once it exceeds £5000.00 to avoid disproportionate administration costs.

7. Retaining and Accessing Records

7.1 Any information produced or relating to the work we undertake for you will be returned to you and should be kept for a period of no less than 6 years from the end of the tax year in question. 

7.2 You agree that any work completed and work in progress for which payment is outstanding will be held by us until all fees relating to it have been paid.

8. Confidentiality and conflicts

8.1 We agree never to share information relating to your business with any third party without prior consent, unless required to do so by law or to comply with regulations or quality control reviews. Likewise, you agree not to use or copy or allow the use of the output of the work we do for with a third party without our prior permission.

8.2 You recognise that we may have to stop providing services to you in the event that a conflict arises between our duties to you and to another client. You will notify us if you have any reason to believe that such a conflict has arisen or may arise.

8.3 We may communicate with you electronically and you accept the risks associated with such communications. 

9. Legislation and compliance

9.1 We are obliged by law and by CIMA to undertake checks to ensure that you and your business are operating lawfully. By agreeing to our terms of engagement you accept that we are authorised to complete such checks as necessary.

9.2 Under Money Laundering Regulations it is a criminal offence if we do not report suspicious transactions or if we inform a client that a report has been made against them. 

9.3 CIMA Members in Practice are committed to fighting economic crime. If you have any suspicions that your accountant or anyone else associated with this accountancy practice is involved in, or associated with, money laundering there may be reasons why you do not wish to raise this with us [me] directly. In such cases, you may make a confidential disclosure to CIMA.

10. Liability

10.1 As Chartered Management Accountants, we have a duty of care to you and we must observe the highest standards of conduct and integrity. Our services to you will only be completed by an accountant fully competent to perform such work and who holds current Professional Indemnity Insurance. 

10.2 Where any loss or damage occurs as the result of you providing misleading, incomplete or false information no liability will be accepted.

10.3 The advice we give you is not to be used by a third party without written consent.   The practice also accepts no legal responsibility from third party use of the financial information provided by us.

11. Complaints and disputes

11.1 We want you to be entirely satisfied with the services provided to you. If, however, you are not, please refer to the Complaints Handling Procedure at Annex 2 of this letter. Any disputes arising from our engagement by you will, subject to the procedure at Annex 2, be governed by English law. 

11.2 If a complaint cannot be resolved through our internal complaints handling procedure, under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 we are required to point you towards alternative dispute resolution (ADR) providers. There are many ADR providers listed on the Chartered Trading Standards Institute website but CIMA has an arrangement with CEDR for the provision of ADR. More information is available on the CIMAGlobal website.

12. Continuity Arrangement

12.1 In the event that we become unable to provide the services agreed upon through incapacity or death, a Continuity Arrangement has been made with CRYSTAL CLEAR BUSINESS SOLUTIONS LIMITED., 07 Jardine House Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, England, HA1 3EX. The purpose of this agreement is to look after your interests by providing continuity of services. You will be contacted in the event of such circumstances arising and you will have the option to decline to be covered by these arrangements. 

13. Termination

13.1 You or we may terminate our engagement by giving 60 days' written notice. All documents and information provided by you will be returned to you within 90 working days of receipt of the notice provided that all outstanding fees have been paid.

13.2 If you are on a monthly payment plan, and terminate services before the year completes, then the final invoice will be based on the work performed until the termination date. The fee will be based on a standard hourly consultation rate of £150. 

13.3 Termination by You, you may withdraw your instructions at any time by written notice to us. Should your matter not be carried through to completion then a charge will be made in respect of the work that has already been completed based upon the fee structure that has been agreed. VAT or similar taxes will be payable on that amount and you will also be billed for any disbursements incurred. We will be entitled to keep all your papers and documents whilst there is money owing to us for our fees and expenses.

13.4 Termination by Us, In some circumstances, we may consider that we ought to cease acting for you. We will only decline to act further for you where we have reasonable grounds to do so (for example: failure by you to settle invoices in full on the due date or to make payments in advance when so requested; failure by you to give clear and proper instructions on how we are to proceed; if it is clear that you have lost confidence in how we are carrying out your instructions; if by continuing to act we would be in breach of the law or rules of professional conduct). If we do cease to act for you then we will confirm in writing the reasons why and give you reasonable notice.

14. Storage and Retrieval of files and documents

At the end of the contract or on termination, we will be entitled to keep all your papers and documents while there is still money owed to us for fees and expenses. At the conclusion of your matter, we will store your file of papers for a reasonable period of time. We would usually store case files for at least six years from the date of the final bill but reserve the right to determine the period of storage. Such papers or files may be stored in an electronic form (with the original paper version being destroyed as soon as it is scanned and saved as an electronic file). 

We also reserve our rights to destroy your files and papers (whether electronic or paper-based) after a reasonable period, without prior notice to you, unless we receive a written request from you during this period. At your request, we will return any papers or property belonging to you which are not subject to a lien or otherwise being stored for safekeeping.

If we retrieve papers or documents or electronic data from storage in relation to continuing or renewing instructions to act for you, we will not normally charge for the direct cost for retrieval from storage.

However, in all other cases, we reserve the right to make a charge for the retrieval or delivery of any stored files (including electronic data), papers or deeds or a charge based on the time we spend reading stored files, papers of deeds, writing letters or other work necessary to comply with your instructions.

Our charges will be based on our hourly rate applicable at the given time and we would always discuss this with you beforehand.

15. ANNUAL ACCOUNTS – LIMITED COMPANIES

15.1. Responsibilities of Directors

As director of the company, under the Companies Acts you are responsible for ensuring that the company maintains proper accounting records and you are ultimately responsible for preparing accounts.

You undertake to keep records of sales invoices, purchase invoices, receipts and payments, together with any other documents relating to the company’s transactions and activities. It will also be necessary for you to provide a record of stock at the company’s year end.

A private company is usually required to file its accounts at Companies House within 9 months of the year end. The company will be liable to fines if it fails to do so. In order to avoid this we will produce statutory accounts, suitable for filing, within the required period, provided all your records are complete and presented to us within three months of the year end, and all our queries are promptly and satisfactorily answered.

You will complete all other returns required by law, for example, confirmation statements and notifications of changes in directors and Persons of Significant Control (PSC’s), unless you have asked us specifically to deal with these for you. We shall, of course, be pleased to advise you on these and any other company matters if requested.

15.2. Responsibility of the accountants

We will prepare the company’s accounts on the basis of the information that is provided to us. We will also draft the accounts in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act, and related Accounting Standards for approval by the Board.

Should our work lead us to conclude that the company is not entitled to exemption from an audit of the accounts, or should we be unable to reach a conclusion on this matter, then we will advise you of this.

You have instructed us to prepare your financial statements. It was agreed that we should carry out the following accounting and other services:

a. write up the accounting records of the company insofar as they are incomplete when presented to us;

b. complete the postings to the nominal ledger; and

c. prepare the accounts for approval by yourselves

You agree that you will arrange to:

I. keep the records of receipts and balances;

II. reconcile the balances monthly with the bank statements;

III. post and balance the purchase and sales ledgers;

IV. extract a detailed list of ledger balances; and

V. prepare details of the annual stocktaking, including prices and in a form which will enable us to verify the prices readily by reference to suppliers’ invoices.

VI. prepare details of work-in-progress at the accounting date and make available to us the documents and other information from which the statement is compiled.

You are responsible for the detection of irregularities and fraud. We do not undertake to discover any shortcomings in your systems or any irregularities on the part of your employees or others, although we will advise you of any that we encounter in preparing your accounts, unless prohibited from doing so by the Anti Money Laundering Legislation.

We will report that in accordance with your instructions and in order to assist you to fulfil your responsibilities, we have compiled, without carrying out an audit, the accounts from your accounting records and from the information and explanations supplied to us.

We have a professional duty to compile accounts which conform with generally accepted accounting principles and which comply with the Companies Acts and applicable accounting standards.

16. BOOKKEEPING

It is agreed that we should carry out the following accounting and other services:

a. keep the records of receipts, payments and balances;

b. reconcile the balances monthly with the bank statements;

c. post and balance the purchase and sales ledgers;

d. extract a detailed list of ledger balances;

e. prepare details of the annual stocktaking and work in progress, suitably priced and extended in a form which will enable us to verify the prices readily by reference to suppliers’ invoices;

f. complete the postings to the nominal ledger;

You are responsible for the detection of irregularities and fraud. We would emphasise that we cannot undertake to discover any shortcomings in your systems or any irregularities on the part of your employees or others, although we will advise you of any that we encounter.

17. CORPORATION TAX

We will prepare a computation for corporation tax purposes adjusted in accordance with the provisions of the Tax Act. We will also prepare and file the corporation tax return (form CT600) required under the Corporation Tax Self Assessment regulations within 12 months of the year end. The corporation tax return, together with the supporting corporation tax computations, will be sent to you for approval and signature prior to submission to the Inspector of Taxes.

You accept that in law a taxpayer cannot contract out of his fiscal responsibilities and that computations and return forms are prepared by us as agent for the company. You also accept that you are legally responsible for making correct returns and for payment of tax on time. If we ask you for information to complete the tax return and it is not provided within the time-scale requested, so that the preparation and submission of the return are delayed, we accept no responsibility for any penalty or interest that may arise.

We will advise you of the corporation tax payments to which the company will be liable, together with the due date of payment. You must inform us immediately if the company pays or receives any interest, or transfers any asset to any shareholder.

Where necessary we will deal with any queries raised by the HM Revenue & Customs and negotiate with HM Revenue & Customs on any question of taxation interest or penalties which may arise.

Any time we need to spend over and above answering straightforward queries raised by the HM Revenue & Customs is additional work for which we will need to charge separately. We will inform you before undertaking any extra work in respect of HM Revenue & Customs enquiries.

To enable us to carry out our work you agree:

I. to make a full disclosure to us of all sources of income, charges, allowances and capital transactions and to provide full information necessary for dealing with the company’s affairs. We will rely on the information and documents being true, correct and complete;

II. to respond quickly and fully to our requests for information and to other communications from us;

III. to provide us with information in sufficient time for the company’s self-assessment tax return to be completed and submitted by the due date. In order to do this, we need to receive all relevant information within 5 months of the year end; and

IV. to forward to us on receipt copies of all statements of account, letters and other communications received from HM Revenue & Customs and Companies House to enable us to deal with them as may be necessary within the statutory time limits.

V. we can approach such third parties as may be appropriate for information that we consider necessary to deal with your affairs and undertake to authorise such third parties to communicate directly with us.

VI. we will prepare a maximum of two drafts of the tax returns. If there is additional information that is provided after the two drafts have been prepared, we reserve the right to charge an additional fee to prepare further versions based on the new information provided. 

18. PAYROLL PREPARATION AND PAYE*

Payroll and year end returns

In order for us to prepare your payroll and HMRC payroll returns known as Real Time Information (RTI) returns we will need the following information from you:

Personal details and proof of ID and addresses of all employees (i.e. name, NI number, home address,) and other data as required by HMRC.

Notification of new employees or employees leaving your employment.

All P45's received by you.

* If no P45 is received, you are required to provide Starter Check Lists, or equivalent, and pass that information to us for processing.

* Notification of any employee who is ill for four or more calendar days, including weekends, bank holidays etc in time for the operation of payroll to enable us to operate statutory sick pay for you.

* Notification of any employee who becomes pregnant or who adopts, or whose partner becomes pregnant or adopts. This will enable us to operate statutory maternity, adoption and paternity pay.

* Details of any money or benefits made available to employees which arise directly or indirectly from their employment with you whether by you or by a third party.

* Hours worked, rates of pay, bonuses, the amount of any pension deductions, etc.

* Any notice of coding received by you.

Payroll returns must be received by HM Revenue & Customs on or before pay day otherwise significant penalties may be charged. Interest will be charged by HMRC if income tax and National Insurance contributions payments are late or less than indicated by the return.

We will assist in the preparation and submission of PAYE returns as required by HMRC and other authorities. However, our appointment as your agent does not absolve the company or its directors from their statutory responsibilities. It is essential that we receive full information from you promptly to enable us to file returns in time to avoid penalties.

We will provide a payroll service for the month end from successfully on boarding your company and all subsequent months.

19. AUTO ENROLMENT*

In respect of the “Automatic Enrolment” of pensions you will need to seek the advice of a person who is regulated to provide pension’s advice. We will assist you in processing your payroll based on the pension details that you provide if you have asked us to provide this service.

20. VAT RETURNS*

We will prepare and file your VAT returns for the VAT Return after successfully onboarding and all subsequent VAT Returns.

We will not be responsible for any penalties or default surcharges arising from the late submission of VAT returns. However, we will endeavour to meet the relevant deadlines if we receive all the company’s VAT records within 7 days of the end of the VAT return period.

You will ensure that:

I. all relevant VAT records are forwarded to us within 7 days of the end of the VAT return period;

II. valid VAT invoices are received for all payments where VAT is being reclaimed;

III. the VAT rating of the goods or services you supply (“supplies”) is correct, i.e. between standard rate, reduced rate, zero rate and exempt supplies;

IV. we are notified in writing of any standard or reduced rate own consumption;

V. any non-business expenditure is clearly marked on supporting invoices;

VI. all supplies made by the business are shown in the records made available to us.

VII. we will prepare a maximum of two drafts of the VAT. If there is additional information that is provided after the two drafts have been prepared, we reserve the right to charge an additional fee to prepare further versions based on the new information provided. 

If you deal with your own VAT returns, we will not be responsible for checking the VAT treatment of supplies made, the deductibility of input VAT and the validity of supporting invoices unless specifically requested in writing to make a detailed review, and will charge separately for this work.

If you are not VAT registered and VAT registration becomes necessary, we will endeavour to ensure that you register in time provided that:

* you notify us in writing within 7 days of the end of each month of the total value of supplies you have made in that month; and

* you notify us immediately in writing if the value of taxable supplies that you will make in the next 30 days is likely to exceed the annual registration limit.

You or, if a company, the company and its directors remain responsible for their VAT Returns.

There are strict rules and time limits for the submission of returns and substantial penalties may arise if these are not followed. It is therefore essential that we receive full information from you promptly to enable us to ensure that the returns are submitted in time. Returns will be sent to you for approval prior to submission.

21. MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTS*

We will prepare monthly management accounts for your business.

We will complete the management accounts from the records, information and explanations supplied to us and prepare draft accounts for your approval.

You will be responsible for:-

1. maintaining records of all receipts and payments of cash;

2. reconciling cash book balances monthly with the bank statements;

3. posting and balancing the purchase and sales ledgers; and

4. extracting a detailed list of ledger balances.

You will also provide estimates of any stocks at the end of each period.

You understand that we will not be carrying out an audit and accordingly will not verify the assets and liabilities of the business, or expenditure and income.

The accounts will include a report that we have not carried out an audit. This report must remain attached to any accounts shown to any other parties.

We do not undertake to discover any shortcomings in your systems or any irregularities on the part of your employees or others, although we will advise you of any that we encounter in preparing your accounts.

22. SUBCONTRACTORS*

You have asked us to operate the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) for your subcontractors. To do this, we will need the following information from you as soon as the tax month (ending the 5th of the month) has finished:

* written confirmation that you have checked or ‘verified’ each new subcontractor with HM Revenue & Customs; and

* written confirmation of whether HM Revenue & Customs has advised that the subcontractor should be paid gross or net and if net, what tax rate.

It is your sole responsibility to establish the employment status of each and every one of your subcontractors. We cannot accept any liability in the event that HM Revenue & Customs challenges the employment status of one or more of your subcontractors or be held responsible for any loss or consequential loss as a result of any action or penalty imposed by HM Revenue & Customs.

We will only advise on employment status if requested. Advice on employment status is additional work and will result in separate charges. We cannot give any form of guarantee or assurance that HM Revenue & Customs will not challenge the employment status of one or more of your subcontractors. We cannot accept any liability in the event that HM Revenue & Customs challenges the employment status of one or more of your subcontractors or be held responsible for any loss or consequential loss as a result of any action or penalty imposed by HM Revenue & Customs.

CIS registration may be lost if returns are made late or tax is paid late. It is your sole responsibility to ensure you comply with the Construction Industry Scheme. We cannot be held responsible or liable for financial loss or consequential financial loss if your CIS registration is cancelled for late submission where we have not received all the necessary information as soon as the tax month has finished or for any late payment occurring as a result.

23. P9D/P11D BENEFITS FOR DIRECTORS AND EMPLOYEES*

You have asked us to prepare forms P9D/P11D. To ensure these forms are correct, we will need details of all benefits, perks or reimbursed expenses received by the directors or employees.

There are penalties for the late submission of forms P9D/P11D. In order to avoid these, you must ensure that we receive complete and accurate details of all benefits and expenses for the tax year within 14 days of the end of the tax year.

24. SOFTWARE LICENCE*

We offer software licence through our wholesale licence agreement with the software provider. You will be charged the monthly subscription via monthly direct debit as per Annexe 1. In the event of missed payment/failed direct debit, the licence will be cancelled from our end, and you will be responsible for the loss of data.

25. ANNUAL ACCOUNTS – SOLE TRADERS/PARTNERSHIPS/LANDLORDS*

Your responsibility for the preparation of accounts

I. You undertake to make available to us all the accounting records for the preparation of the accounts and make full disclosure to us of all relevant information. You will need to approve the accounts we prepare.

II. You are responsible for ensuring that, to the best of your knowledge and belief, financial information is reliable.

III. You are also responsible for ensuring that the activities of the business are conducted honestly and that the business complies with the laws and regulations applicable to its activities, and for taking steps to deter fraudulent or other dishonest conduct and to detect any that occur.

IV. We will prepare ?a maximum of two drafts of the accounts. If there is additional information that is provided after the two drafts have been prepared, ?we reserve the right to charge an additional fee to prepare further versions based on ?the new information provided.

V. We will prepare the accounts in accordance with our workflow and we will let you know when we expect to finalise your accounts. If you need the accounts urgently for whatsoever reason we will charge a premium of 25% subject to our workload at the time.

Our responsibilities for the preparation of accounts

a. We will prepare your annual accounts from your accounting records and the information and explanations you give us. We shall prepare draft annual accounts for your approval.

b. We will advise you on the adequacy of your records for preparation of the annual accounts and recommend improvements which we consider necessary. We shall not be responsible if, as a result of you not taking our advice, you incur losses or penalties.

c. We will use reasonable skill and care in the preparation of your accounts but will not be responsible for errors arising from incorrect information supplied by you.

d. We will report that, in accordance with your instructions and without carrying out an audit, we have prepared the accounts from your accounting records and from the information and explanations supplied to us.

e. We have a professional duty to compile accounts which conform with generally accepted accounting principles.

26. PERSONAL TAX – INDIVIDUALS AND SOLE TRADERS*

Your spouse or Civil Partner under the Civil Partnership Act is legally responsible for his/her own tax affairs and must be dealt with independently and separately. We will assume that you agree that we can disclose to your spouse/Civil Partner details of your financial affairs so we can consider your combined tax position, unless you tell us in writing that you do not wish us to do this.

We shall be pleased to act as your personal tax advisers in the UK with effect from the date of this Letter of Engagement.

We will prepare your personal income tax and capital gains tax return together with all supporting schedules and check any HM Revenue & Customs’ calculation of your self-assessment of tax and Class 4 National Insurance contributions for the relevant tax year and all subsequent years.

We will send you your tax return and supporting schedules for your written approval. Once the return has been approved, we will submit it together with any other necessary information to HM Revenue & Customs.

We will tell you the amounts of tax and National Insurance contributions to be paid and the dates by which you should make the payments, including payments on account and the balancing payment, and we will make repayment claims when tax and National Insurance contributions appear to have been overpaid.

We will correspond with HM Revenue & Customs on your behalf. You will need to send us any correspondence received from HM Revenue & Customs as soon as you receive it.  

HM Revenue & Customs can charge both interest and penalties if there is a delay in submitting a tax return or making tax payments.  Such charges are automatic if the tax return is submitted after 31st January following the end of the tax year, or if any payments are made after the dates that the tax and National Insurance contributions are due.

It is therefore important that all details required for the preparation of your tax return are forwarded to us as soon as possible after 5th April each year and by 30th June at the latest. If the information is received after that date, we will not accept responsibility for any penalties or surcharges charged by HM Revenue & Customs.

HM Revenue & Customs make enquiries into a number of tax returns each year. Any time we need to spend over and above answering straightforward queries regarding entries on the tax return is additional work for which we will need to charge separately.  We will inform you before undertaking any extra work in respect of HM Revenue & Customs enquiries.

We will provide our professional services outlined in this letter with reasonable care and skill. However, we will not be responsible for any losses, penalties, surcharges, interest or additional tax liabilities arising from the supply by you or others of incorrect or incomplete information, or from the failure by you or others to supply information or your failure to act on our advice or respond promptly to communications from us or the tax authorities.

You agree that we can approach such third parties as may be appropriate for information that we consider necessary to deal with your affairs and undertake to authorise such third parties to communicate directly with us.

27. PARTNERSHIP TAX*

We will prepare the income tax and capital gains tax computations based on the partnership Accounts and from information and explanations provided by you.

We will prepare the firm’s annual partnership return, including the partnership statement of total income, gains, losses, and charges of the firm for each period of account ending in the return period.

We will send you the income tax and capital gains tax computations and the tax return and supporting schedules for your written approval. Once the return has been approved, we will submit it together with any other necessary information to HM Revenue & Customs.      

We will advise all the partners who were partners of the firm during the period of their respective shares of the firm’s total income, gains, losses, charges and any other information they need to be able to file their personal self-assessment tax returns.

We will correspond with HM Revenue & Customs on your behalf. You will need to send us any correspondence received from HM Revenue & Customs as soon as you receive it.

HM Revenue & Customs can charge both interest and penalties if a tax return is submitted late. Such charges are automatic if the tax return is submitted after 31st January following the end of the tax year. For partnership penalties, the amount due is multiplied by the number of partners. Delays in submitting the partnership return may affect the returns of all the partners, with the possibility of penalties, interest and surcharges being payable by each individual partner.

It is therefore important that all details required for the preparation of your tax return are forwarded to us as soon as possible after 5th April each year and by 30th June at the latest.  If the information is received after that date, we will not accept responsibility for any penalties or surcharges charged by HM Revenue & Customs.

HM Revenue & Customs make enquiries into a number of tax returns each year. Any time we need to spend over and above answering straightforward queries regarding entries on the tax return is additional work for which we will need to charge separately.  We will inform you before undertaking any extra work in respect of HM Revenue & Customs enquiries.

You agree that we can approach such third parties as may be appropriate for information that we consider necessary to deal with your affairs and undertake to authorise such third parties to communicate directly with us.

Yours sincerely

Signed on behalf of [practice name]

___________________________      ____________

[CIMA MiP]                                          [Date]

Before any work can be undertaken on your behalf, you are required to confirm acceptance of these terms of engagement by signing and returning the original of this letter to us at the address provided. Please retain a copy for your own records.

I confirm I have read, understand and agree to the terms and conditions set out above and in the annexes to this letter. By signing and returning this engagement letter, I am consenting to my personal data being used as set out above. [I confirm I have the authority to act on behalf of the company].

___________________________      ____________

[Name & Title]                                     [Date]

ANNEX 2

CIMA GUIDANCE EXAMPLE – COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

1. Purpose

1.1 We Keep The Taxman Happy Ltd are committed to upholding best practice through a high-quality service to all our clients. This Annex sets out the procedure we will operate in dealing with complaints arising from the provision of services under our letter of engagement.

2. Raising an Issue

2.1 In the first instance please contact [email protected] to discuss any concerns you have, so that the matter can be investigated immediately.  

3. Making an Informal Complaint

3.1 An informal complaint can be made by telephone, or by speaking, face to face or in writing to [email protected]. If the matter is not resolved at this stage, and you have not already issued a complaint in writing, you should do so. Please include specific details so that the matter can be thoroughly investigated.

4. Making a Formal Complaint

 4.1 Upon receipt of your written formal complaint an acknowledgement will be sent to you within14 working days. The name and contact details of the person who will be dealing with your case will be supplied to you at this point.

4.2 Within 14 working days from receipt of your written complaint you will receive in writing a summary of our understanding of your complaint. You will be asked at this time to provide any further evidence or information regarding the complaint and to confirm that we have understood all your concerns.

4.3 Following such confirmation, we will investigate the matter and write to you in reply within 14 working days unless it becomes apparent to us that the investigation may not be completed within this timescale. In these circumstances, a written explanation will be sent to you including a progress report. When a substantive reply is sent you, a summary of findings will be included along with details of any further action to be taken.

5. If you are not satisfied 

5.1 For service-related matters involving a CIMA member in Practice in the UK, you may wish to know that CIMA offers an independent Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) facility for members of the public.

5.2 If in the context of your dealings with us or the handling of your complaint, you believe that a member of CIMA has been guilty of misconduct, you may lodge a complaint with the Professional Conduct department of the Institute.

5.3 Further information on ADR or making a complaint about alleged misconduct can be found on the CIMA website at www.cimaglobal.com.

*If applicable

VAT extra where applicable.