VCP10447 - Belated Notification Penalty: Mitigation: Mitigating factors to be considered

Belated Notification Penalty has been replaced by the Failure to Notify penalty introduced by Schedule 41 of the Finance Act 2008. The Failure to Notify penalty applies to obligations to notify HMRC of a liability to be registered for VAT on or after 01/04/2010. The Belated Notification Penalty under Section 67 VATA 1994 continues to apply to obligations to notify a liability to be registered for VAT before 01/04/2010.

Please see the Compliance Handbook CH70000 for more details about the new failure to notify penalty.

Mitigation Framework

When considering mitigation you should consult the Mitigation Framework, see VCP11700 which outlines the general factors you should take into account when determining if mitigation is appropriate

Reasonable Excuse

The reasonable excuse provisions of the penalty system are not affected by the introduction of mitigation. You must consider whether or not there is reasonable excuse before you consider mitigation, see VCP10430 

If there is a reasonable excuse then no penalty will be imposed for belated notification, or if it has already been imposed it will be withdrawn.