CISR90040 - View Customer and Record Contact: contractor Scheme Returns

General

Having followed the steps listed at CISR90020 to gain access to view a contractor scheme, and then selected View Customer from the CIS Main Menu, the next window visible will be the ‘Scheme Details’ window. From this window you should select the [Returns] tab at the top of the window.

Contractor Monthly Returns

Each month contractors must send a complete return to HMRC of:

  • all payments made within the Scheme to subcontractors,
  • details of any deductions made from these payments,
  • a declaration confirming that employment status has been considered, and
  • a declaration that the verification process has been applied correctly.

This return must be submitted, to reach HMRC no later than 14 days after the end of the tax month to which it relates and can be submitted electronically, by Internet or by post. See CISR60000 onwards: Monthly Returns for further information.

Scheme Returns window

From this window you can view details of the returns submitted by the selected scheme. This window is divided into two panels

  • Return Periods
  • Unmatched Returns

Return Periods

Within this upper panel you will be able to:

  • View the AO reference of the scheme
  • Select from the radio buttons to view either
  • [All] the versions of each return submitted for each month (for example, effective, superseded and so on, if more than one return is submitted) for the scheme.

Or only the

  • [Effective] returns submitted. A return is effective when it has been logged, captured and successfully matched to a UTR, corresponding AO Ref’, and a valid period. In the event of multiple returns being submitted in one month - where there have been corrections to that return, the ‘Effective’ return will be the one that is eventually deemed to be the final and correct version.
  • Select the income tax month of a particular return to be viewed by making a selection from the drop down menu alongside the entry ‘Month Ending’. If [ALL] is selected it will show all the different versions in that month, whereas if [Effective] is selected alongside an entry in the ‘Month Ending field’ it will show just one entry.

On entering this window the ‘Effective’ radio button will be highlighted therefore the returns displayed within the list box will be the effective returns for each period.

To enable you to view returns for a specific period there is a ‘period starting’ and ‘period ending’ sort facility, ou will not however be able to use this facility for any unmatched returns:

  • Period Starting and Period Ending - Initially, the earliest ‘period starting’ date will be the start date of the current return period and the end date will be six months prior to that date. The ‘Year’ drop down selection is currently populated with three years - (2007, 2008, and 2009) and at the start of each new tax year the next year will be added until a maximum of nine years is exceeded when the oldest year will be dropped.

  • Select the number of returns to be viewed by selecting the desired month and year in the ‘period starting and period ending’ drop down lists, then select ‘filter’. If [ALL] is selected it will show all the different versions in that month, whereas if [Effective] is selected alongside an entry in the ‘Month Ending field’ it will show just one entry.

Having made your selections the list will be populated with the following information:

  • The income tax month of the return to be viewed
  • The date the return was received
  • The status of the return - See ‘Effective Returns’ above or CISR63050 for full details of the many types of status a return can be given.
  • The channel through which the return was received. This will either be
  • By Internet - These returns will be filed electronically
  • By Paper - These returns will be made on a completed CIS300 and any other continuation sheets
  • By Telephone - Mainly used for Nil returns. See CISR63650 for more details.
  • Whether the return is a Nil return. This column will be populated with YES if it is a genuine Nil return.

Unmatched Returns

This panel will include details of any returns submitted in the income tax month selected that contain a valid scheme reference thus linking them to this scheme, but a problem arises matching the return to a particular month for that scheme. This could be because the month entries have been omitted from the return or because they have been quoted incorrectly or there is already a return received for the period quoted.

Having ticked a check box within either the Return Periods or Unmatched Returns list you can now go on to view details of the return selected. To do this you should select the tab [Return Details] at the bottom of the window.

Return Details window

This window is divided into three panels

  • Return Details
  • Totals for Return
  • Subcontractor Payments

Return Details

The top panel contains key information relevant to the return being viewed. It includes

  • An [Employment Status Declaration] indicator where the result shown will be either YES or NO.

This information has been taken from the monthly return, which asks the contractor to confirm that they have considered the employment status of the workers they have engaged. If the result shown is YES, the contractor is confirming that the employment status of all individuals on the return have been considered and that the contract under which returned payments are being made are not contracts of employment. If the result shown is NO, you should not automatically assume that the contractor has entered a NO in reply as it may be that the entry has been left blank.

  • A [Verification Declaration] where the result shown will be YES or NO.

Likewise, this has been taken from the declaration on the monthly return, which asks the contractor to confirm that all subcontractors that need to be verified have been verified with HMRC. If the result shown is NO, again you should not automatically assume that the contractor has entered a NO in reply as it may be that the entry has been left blank. If the result shown is YES, the contractor is confirming that every subcontractor included on this return has either been verified by HMRC subsequent to the awarding of a contract or been included in their company’s CIS returns in the current tax year or previous two tax years.

  • A [Match Number] - any return that is successfully matched to a Scheme Ref, UTR and Period is given a match number. The first return that is successfully matched for any period is given a match number of 1. If that return is later amended the whole return is reprocessed which means putting it through the matching process again. If the subsequent return is successfully matched this amended return is then given a match number of 2, and so on.
  • The [Date Processed] - this refers to the date that HMRC capture the information shown on a return onto the CIS computer. This will usually be by way of a process known as Rapid Data Capture (RDC), based at the Construction Processing Centre in Netherton, Merseyside.

Totals for Return

This panel will display the totals of all:

  • Gross payments to subcontractors in that month
  • Cost of materials incurred in that month
  • Deductions from payments in that month.

If there is a text entry in this panel in red stating ‘Totals are based on readable data only’ this will indicate that the entries recorded here might not be completely accurate, (and likewise the information contained within the subcontractor panel below). There will also be an [!] alongside the relevant total figure(s) to indicate that these total(s) do not include any minus figures or unreadable sums - which might have been recorded on the contractors return from where these details were extracted. Also, some fields may be blank and noted with an asterisk [*]. This means the information was missing from the return at the time of processing.

If the user wishes to see a digital image of a return, a written report explaining the reason for the request should be sent to the CIS Business Helpdesk. They will then liaise with the HMRC on site liaison team based at Netherton. The information retrieved will however be returned direct to the ‘office’ that made the request.

You should be aware that the digital image is unlikely to provide any additional information to that already shown on the contractors or subcontractors records and requests for such should only be made in exceptional circumstances. The initial approach where there are unreadable entries on the return to obtain the correct information should be to contact the contractor.

Subcontractor Payments

The bottom panel contains a list of all subcontractors included on the return and paid in that month, together with the subcontractors’

  • UTR
  • NINO/CRN
  • Verification number
  • Total payment for the month
  • Cost of any materials in that month
  • Total deductions in that month

If you then wish to view the history of the return you are currently looking at you should select [Back] to return to the Scheme Returns window and from there you select the [Return History] button at the bottom of the window. If there have been no changes to the return the Return History button will remain disabled.

Return History

This window will show the following information for each return that has been filed for that scheme:

  • The status of the return. See CISR63050 for full details of the many types of status a return can be given.
  • The date of receipt
  • The date of amendment, if any
  • The Match Number - Any return that is successfully matched to a Scheme Ref, UTR and Period is given a match number. The first return that is successfully matched for any period is given a match number of 1. If that return is later amended the whole return is reprocessed which means putting it through the matching process again. If the subsequent return is successfully matched this amended return is then given a match number of 2
  • The Reason for Amendment, if any
  • Trace From, Trace To and Trace Action - An explanation of these terms is best served with this example: A return is received for Scheme A, period 1. This gets a match number of 1 and becomes the ‘Effective’ return. It is then corrected and given a match reference of 2 and this then becomes the ‘Effective’ return. Match 1 at the same time becomes the ‘superseded’ return. If you now want to view the latest return, the ‘Trace From’ for the new effective match 2 return will be the return details originally captured for match 1. The ‘Trace To’ for the superseded match 1 will be the new effective match 2 return details. The ‘Trace Action’ is the activity that gave rise to the change and in this example will be ‘Correct Error’.
  • Trace From - This will show the scheme reference number, the month and year the return was submitted and the match number given to the (first) captured return in that month. (On amendment, this becomes the superseded return).
  • Trace to - This will again show the scheme ref, month and year of submission, as well as the new effective match number of any subsequent return received for that month. (This now becomes the new ‘Effective’ return).
  • Trace Action - Correct Error.