VAEC6190 - General assessment procedures: Assessments to missing traders

The procedural guidance in this manual only covers the VAT Mainframe and VISION processes. For guidance on the Making Tax Digital and ETMP processes for fully migrated customers, see VAEC0200 and the Making Tax Digital for VAT compliance toolkit.

In cases where the trader is missing, any assessment should nevertheless be made without undue delay.

Although the whereabouts of the trader may at the time be unknown you must ensure that the assessment is made and notified to the last known address within the appropriate time limits. You should

• prepare and process the VAT641 in the normal way
• send the output documents to the address shown on the registration documents and to the last known address of the trader if different, and
• scan a copy into the trader’s electronic folder, bearing the original date of issue. This may then be re-issued with a covering letter in the event of the trader being located.