In order to police the self assessment system Revenue employs the use of random investigations so that a tax return under any tax head may be selected for audit. There may be a specific reason why a return is selected or you may be chosen at random.
Should this happen the return will be subjected to detailed examination by Revenue officials who will try to ensure that all profits, income and chargeable gains are correctly calculated, that there are no omissions and that credits and reliefs have been correctly claimed.
A Revenue audit will usually cover one year or accounting period, however in certain circumstances the examination can be extended to several years.
At BDO we recognise that Revenue Audits can be very stressful for the taxpayer, at best they are time consuming and can detract from the day to day running of the business, at worst they can result in large bills and possible court appearances. In order to reduce the stress levels as much as possible we have a team of people who have many years experience working in this area.
We deal with all types of investigations carried out by Revenue and work hard to ensure that:
- The taxpayers rights are respected at all times
- The taxpayers stress is minimised by accompanying him/her at all meetings and as far as possible dealing with Revenue on his/her behalf
- The legislation is correctly applied in all cases
- The tax and interest being demanded is minimised
- The lowest penalty is negotiated
- Phased payments are arranged where necessary
- Prosecution is avoided in the more serious cases
- Improvements to accounting and tax compliance systems are suggested
- Future tax planning opportunities are discussed with the taxpayer.