Checking up on the taxman

sensibleken

pickarooney wrote: »

Was the money not being taken out of your pay? How can you be expected to pay for his theft?

It was, they just werent paying it on. I didnt have to pay a cent myself but just be aware that 'your investment can go up as well as down'. Id be especially warey if you work in retail or for someone who has a history of being a miserly wanker

That's terrifying. I wasn't even aware that could happen if you were getting proper paychecks. How long were you paying no tax for and how did it get sorted out?

sensibleken

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

That's terrifying. I wasn't even aware that could happen if you were getting proper paychecks. How long were you paying no tax for and how did it get sorted out?

It was three years and they were also moving other money through me to fool the PAYE. It was a big but completely moronic operation, for example they had me down for working 462 days in 2003 .

The people there were very good. On the first phone call they recognised something was most definetely not right and they started an investigation. thankfully I have a cousin who is an accountant who sorted it but they never came looking as they recognised i couldnt be responsible. that and theyre probably used to dodgy employers.

the main point is that the taxman doesnt monitor it. so by ommision or malice it is possible to owe them money, and if its legitimate you have to pay up. So people should just think about it before thinking theyre in for a pay day.

sensibleken

sensibleken wrote: »

It was three years and they were also moving other money through me to fool the PAYE. It was a big but completely moronic operation, for example they had me down for working 462 days in 2003 .

The people there were very good. On the first phone call they recognised something was most definetely not right and they started an investigation. thankfully I have a cousin who is an accountant who sorted it but they never came looking as they recognised i couldnt be responsible. that and theyre probably used to dodgy employers.

the main point is that the taxman doesnt monitor it. so by ommision or malice it is possible to owe them money, and if its legitimate you have to pay up. So people should just think about it before thinking theyre in for a pay day.

What I find weird is that they only look into if if YOU phone THEM up. Would they not have looked into it earlier?

I get what you mean about not thinking you're in for a pay day, but we're not talking about winning anything here. We're talking about getting back our own money. If I decide not to ring up because I'm afraid I could owe them, I could be missing out on hundreds of euro that's rightfully mine.

Kasabian

Many years ago a guy I worked with started a job after along time on the dole. He waited for 6 weeks for his wages and the day he received his payslip it included a note from the revenue that all monies were deducted for outstanding taxes he owed and he still owed 9k. :eek:

Turned out that his brother had him listed as a director in a company he was operating.

sensibleken

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

What I find weird is that they only look into if if YOU phone THEM up. Would they not have looked into it earlier?

I get what you mean about not thinking you're in for a pay day, but we're not talking about winning anything here. We're talking about getting back our own money. If I decide not to ring up because I'm afraid I could owe them, I could be missing out on hundreds of euro that's rightfully mine.

truth is im one of millions of taxpayers, they wouldnt have noticed unless they were looking for it.

Very true, you are getting only what your owed but you could owe them. Think of what your situation was. Did you change jobs that year, perhaps to a higher payed role? Did you maybe not apply for rent or bin tax relief? were you payed irregular amounts, Ie did you do overtime, on call work etc? because tax is calculated on expected earnings for a year if that figure fluctuates during the year then you could have some money owed to you

All these make a difference and they tend to err very much on the side of taking more rather then less which is why the vast vast majority who enquire get a rebate of some description.

sensibleken

sensibleken wrote: »

truth is im one of millions of taxpayers, they wouldnt have noticed unless they were looking for it.

Very true, you are getting only what your owed but you could owe them. Think of what your situation was. Did you change jobs that year, perhaps to a higher payed role? Did you maybe not apply for rent or bin tax relief? were you payed irregular amounts, Ie did you do overtime, on call work etc? because tax is calculated on expected earnings for a year if that figure fluctuates during the year then you could have some money owed to you

All these make a difference and they tend to err very much on the side of taking more rather then less which is why the vast vast majority who enquire get a rebate of some description.

I did change jobs several times in 2008, started on a low salary, went higher then lower and had a month or two where I didn't work at all. I didn't apply for any relief. I'd have thought the time I didn't earn at all would have balanced out any underpayments but I don't really understand how it works.

Anyway, I just rang them and they said I am owed money back. Not for 2009, strangely enough. They said to write a letter to them and ask for a balancing statement and that I'd get a cheque. They said I don't owe them anything. He wouldn't give me any kind of details about how much I'll get back or why. Can I assume I'm grand?

sensibleken

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

I did change jobs several times in 2008, started on a low salary, went higher then lower and had a month or two where I didn't work at all. I didn't apply for any relief. I'd have thought the time I didn't earn at all would have balanced out any underpayments but I don't really understand how it works.

Anyway, I just rang them and they said I am owed money back. Not for 2009, strangely enough. They said to write a letter to them and ask for a balancing statement and that I'd get a cheque. They said I don't owe them anything. He wouldn't give me any kind of details about how much I'll get back or why. Can I assume I'm grand?

congrats. yeah id definetely say your grand, you probably just over paid.

I would recomend setting up a PAYE anytime account. once you set up your account and get your PIN you can add all your relief claims retrospectively and ask for another balancing statement for as far back as 2007, if you didnt claim them they wont have balanced anything out but you are still owed them.

So it sounds to me like you could be owed even more than you think. could make a nice christmas bonus

Azureus

Does anyone know how you go about claiming back on stuff like medical bills etc? My dentist said something about a med2 form for claiming stuff back on tax, but I havent a clue how to go about it.
Went onto the revenue website and calculated that they owe me 150ish tax back from this year, they're sending me my paye anytime pin number so hopefully thatll help with the xmas spends
Can you claim back on rent etc? Cant find info anywhere!! Might just pop into them in town...

watna

I wanted to check mine but you need an address to send your log-in details to when you register online for PAYE services. I left Ireland at the end of 2008 so I was hoping there would be a little surprise for me! Don't know if I could be bothered now. The letter would have to go to my parents and it just seems like a hassle if you're not in Ireland. Boo-urns!

I owe the New Zealand Inland Revenue Department $200, the baxtards. I work full-time and taxes get deducted directly from my wages. I don't how I can owe them more money. In NZ, if you get emergency taxed you don't get it back in your next wages like you do at home, you have to wait until the end of the tax year to claim it. A warning to anyone moving to NZ! I had so much trouble getting money they owed me out of them. The $200 is due on the 1st April and I'm not paying it a day earlier then I have to. Hate the tax department!

sensibleken

Azureus wrote: »

Does anyone know how you go about claiming back on stuff like medical bills etc? My dentist said something about a med2 form for claiming stuff back on tax, but I havent a clue how to go about it.
Went onto the revenue website and calculated that they owe me 150ish tax back from this year, they're sending me my paye anytime pin number so hopefully thatll help with the xmas spends
Can you claim back on rent etc? Cant find info anywhere!! Might just pop into them in town...

yes you can claim back rent and medical bills (some of it anyway) along with a few other tax reliefs. The simplest way of calculating what youre owed is wait for the pin and set up the account. There there is a tab where you just click what you know and at the end ask for a balancing statement

sensibleken

sensibleken wrote: »

congrats. yeah id definetely say your grand, you probably just over paid.

I would recomend setting up a PAYE anytime account. once you set up your account and get your PIN you can add all your relief claims retrospectively and ask for another balancing statement for as far back as 2007, if you didnt claim them they wont have balanced anything out but you are still owed them.

So it sounds to me like you could be owed even more than you think. could make a nice christmas bonus

As watna said, I think you need an address in Ireland and I don't live in Ireland anymore. Could I just ask for balancing statements for as far back as 2007 now? I just asked the man what I was owed from them for the time I worked in Ireland (2007-2009) and he said I'm only owed for 2008. I had a massive emergency tax issue in 2007 and was refunded all of that (about 2 grand) in early 2008, so it wouldn't surprise me if any overpayment for that year has already been settled. If I claim my money back this week, can I still claim rent relief/medical expenses for 2008, or will it be too late by then? It would be a huge hassle for me to get all the details together, get receipts from my GP, etc. I'm not even sure I could.

watna

I just registered for PAYE online and told my Dad to let me know when my pin arrives. Pain in the ass you can't do it all online. I'm sure there's loads of people like Wyatt Slow Bucket who don't have addresses in Ireland anymore.

If I'm owed anything, everyone gets a pint (but a free mythical internet pint!)

sensibleken

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

As watna said, I think you need an address in Ireland and I don't live in Ireland anymore. Could I just ask for balancing statements for as far back as 2007 now? I just asked the man what I was owed from them for the time I worked in Ireland (2007-2009) and he said I'm only owed for 2008. I had a massive emergency tax issue in 2007 and was refunded all of that (about 2 grand) in early 2008, so it wouldn't surprise me if any overpayment for that year has already been settled. If I claim my money back this week, can I still claim rent relief/medical expenses for 2008, or will it be too late by then? It would be a huge hassle for me to get all the details together, get receipts from my GP, etc. I'm not even sure I could.

If youve already had an issue for 2007 resolved then you are unlikely to be owed anything on your existing claims. but if you were paying rent and didnt claim it you probably are owed.

you should still be able to claim for 2008 into next year. If you cant get an irish address (didnt know you needed one, maybe ring them to confirm) to receive your PIN you should be able to do it over the phone. the person you were talking to sounds dismissive but usually the people ive spoken to have been very good.

Without the medical receipts i would not claim as if you cant back it up they can come after you. Rent is easier to claim, you just need the landlords address, their PPS, annual rent. If you already have a balancing statement on the way you can still add rent relief and just ask for another balancing statement, no cost.

smash

Ever year I manage to reclaim over 2k in overpaid tax.

You shouldn't have to go looking for it though, it should all be done on computer and issued back to you. Same with bin charges etc, why can't the refunds be made at source or off the price of tags?

watna

smash wrote: »

Ever year I manage to reclaim over 2k in overpaid tax.

You shouldn't have to go looking for it though, it should all be done on computer and issued back to you. Same with bin charges etc, why can't the refunds be made at source or off the price of tags?

Are these bin tags a new thing? I don't remember them at all. I vaguely recall we used to get a bill with bin charges on it.

Here, we buy council bin bags from the supermarket and you can only put rubbish out in these particular bags - they're like black sacks but yellow. It works well, no extra hassle, just put them in your trolley when you're doing the weekly shop - 5 bags for $11. Seems a bit strange to be claiming tax back on putting your bins out.

Bruthal

MungBean wrote: »

Just thought I'd tell everyone in these desperate times to check up on the taxman. My friend was at me for ages to call in and ask if I was owed anything back and I ignored him thinking that asking the revenue if they owed me money was too easy and would end up costing me if anyting.

Went in one fine day, handed over my PPS card and asked if they owed me anything and was told there was €3,700 there from 4 years previous and that had I of been in 2 weeks later it would have been gone forever. She hit a few buttons and a check was on its way. 4 years that money was sitting there while the taxman waited and hoped I wouldnt call in.

Next time your passing the revenue pop in and ask because they sure as hell aint gonna tell ya about it.



Dont blame me if you get audited or done for tax evasion.

Last time i did it, i just emailed them, and that was all it took. I had done it a few times before by phone.

smash

watna wrote: »

Are these bin tags a new thing? I don't remember them at all. I vaguely recall we used to get a bill with bin charges on it.

Here, we buy council bin bags from the supermarket and you can only put rubbish out in these particular bags - they're like black sacks but yellow. It works well, no extra hassle, just put them in your trolley when you're doing the weekly shop - 5 bags for $11. Seems a bit strange to be claiming tax back on putting your bins out.

You can claim back for your bin charges. I'm paying around 450-500 a year for my bin collections from a private operator because the council don't supply the service in my area. Our bin bags are around €5 each. And they keep getting smaller!

westendgirlie

Well done Izzy

@smash, did you buy a house in the last decade that is in a renewal area? That could be the reason you are getting 2k every year.

Rule of thumb with the bin credit would be that a weekly tag costs €10. So that's €520 in a year. the tax credit is around €400. You don't have to provide evidence of this. The tag you purchase go away with the binman.

smash

westendgirlie wrote: »

@smash, did you buy a house in the last decade that is in a renewal area? That could be the reason you are getting 2k every year.

It's nothing to do with my house, just overpaying. I bring it to the attention of accounts in work every year. In Jan I got 1700 back and my wife got 400 through the joint credits.

cowhands

Can anyone help, we got married in Aug and as far as I know we need to tell the tax office, somewhere in the back of my mind Im thinking we can only claim as a married couple at the start of the year? so we would be owed money back (Aug - Jan)? and then going forward everything should just be settled on our pay checks??

smash

cowhands wrote: »

Can anyone help, we got married in Aug and as far as I know we need to tell the tax office, somewhere in the back of my mind Im thinking we can only claim as a married couple at the start of the year? so we would be owed money back (Aug - Jan)? and then going forward everything should just be settled on our pay checks??

Just tell the revenue, you'll get new P60's and then in Jan you can claim tax back.

The Skulls

Hi, sorry to butt in but can anyone shed any light on the PRSI issue? Apparently people had their deductions calculated at 8% when it should have been 4% as referenced by a previous poster, I can't find any other reference to it & obviously revenue are not going to put a notice on their web page stating they owe us money!!!  any info would be appreciated.

sensibleken

The Skulls wrote: »

Hi, sorry to butt in but can anyone shed any light on the PRSI issue? Apparently people had their deductions calculated at 8% when it should have been 4% as referenced by a previous poster, I can't find any other reference to it & obviously revenue are not going to put a notice on their web page stating they owe us money!!!  any info would be appreciated.

first ive heard

sensibleken

sensibleken wrote: »

If youve already had an issue for 2007 resolved then you are unlikely to be owed anything on your existing claims. but if you were paying rent and didnt claim it you probably are owed.

you should still be able to claim for 2008 into next year. If you cant get an irish address (didnt know you needed one, maybe ring them to confirm) to receive your PIN you should be able to do it over the phone. the person you were talking to sounds dismissive but usually the people ive spoken to have been very good.

Without the medical receipts i would not claim as if you cant back it up they can come after you. Rent is easier to claim, you just need the landlords address, their PPS, annual rent. If you already have a balancing statement on the way you can still add rent relief and just ask for another balancing statement, no cost.

I doubt I'd get rent relief for 2007 as I was renting informally. I rented through a proper landlord in 2008 for six months, so I might get something there.

Stupid question, but what's this about a balancing statement? Your man on the phone was very dismissive. Do I need to ask for the balancing statement when I write to them? Or just a cheque? Or do I get both at the same time? Or do I need to fill in a form? Never dealt with the taxman before.

uch

I work for Revenue and we want you to stop asking so we can keep it all;)

RachaelVO

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

I doubt I'd get rent relief for 2007 as I was renting informally. I rented through a proper landlord in 2008 for six months, so I might get something there.

Stupid question, but what's this about a balancing statement? Your man on the phone was very dismissive. Do I need to ask for the balancing statement when I write to them? Or just a cheque? Or do I get both at the same time? Or do I need to fill in a form? Never dealt with the taxman before.

Wyatt Slow Bucket, just fecking well call them again and ask the questions till you get the answers! Bite the bullet and be brave. If you owe them money you'll know, it will stay owed till the end of time amen. They have a statute as to when they owe you money, which I believe is 4 years, but not the other way around, so if you are back in Ireland, and get a job, they will know where you are, so you're fretting there for the inevitable!

HOWEVER...

If they owe you money (which is probably the case) you'll get it. What exactly are ya worried about? Just call and see what happens!!!!!!!!

sensibleken

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

I doubt I'd get rent relief for 2007 as I was renting informally. I rented through a proper landlord in 2008 for six months, so I might get something there.

Stupid question, but what's this about a balancing statement? Your man on the phone was very dismissive. Do I need to ask for the balancing statement when I write to them? Or just a cheque? Or do I get both at the same time? Or do I need to fill in a form? Never dealt with the taxman before.

You simply ask for a balancing statement. this will calculate what your owed and they will then either send a cheque or pay into your account if you'd prefer. the best thing is just ring up again and say 'I'd like to get a balancing statement please'

Gummy Panda

I'm afraid to do it incase I owe them money.

amacca

Gummy Panda wrote: »

I'm afraid to do it incase I owe them money.

They are depending on your fear

They thrive on your fear

Your fear will cripple you

They are laughing away maniacally in their little beige cubicles at the thought of your fear supporting their bland "by the book" existences

....................claim back your tax...man and blow it all on black market goods in one final glorious up yours to the establishment!

jail time will seem like nothing in comparison to the slow creeping fear death you are experiencing now

RachaelVO

RachaelVO wrote: »

Wyatt Slow Bucket, just fecking well call them again and ask the questions till you get the answers! Bite the bullet and be brave. If you owe them money you'll know, it will stay owed till the end of time amen. They have a statute as to when they owe you money, which I believe is 4 years, but not the other way around, so if you are back in Ireland, and get a job, they will know where you are, so you're fretting there for the inevitable!

HOWEVER...

If they owe you money (which is probably the case) you'll get it. What exactly are ya worried about? Just call and see what happens!!!!!!!!

I don't want to ring because of the cost. It costs me almost £10 last time, I was on hold for ages. I know I'm entitled to money and I have the letter, I was just confused about what exactly to ask for. I'm going to send this one today (I need some extra cash asap) and then see if I can sort out the rent thing later.

sensibleken wrote:

You simply ask for a balancing statement. this will calculate what your owed and they will then either send a cheque or pay into your account if you'd prefer. the best thing is just ring up again and say 'I'd like to get a balancing statement please'

The man I spoke to told me I had to put it in writing (that I want a balancing statement, I assume). Pretty annoying since I read on here that other people just asked on the phone, but he insisted it had to be done.

westendgirlie

I'll call for ya Izzy. Just sign the form that I will email to you authorising payment to be made out to me. I will deduct the cost of my phone call and western union you the balance.

Honest guv' I'm legit

Noopti

Did this last year and they said I owed them 300 odd quid, but that they "won't be collecting it at this time". No wonder the country is in a jock!

Oh, and someone mentioned something about PRSI being overpaid? What's the story with that?

pickarooney

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

I don't want to ring because of the cost. It costs me almost £10 last time, I was on hold for ages. I know I'm entitled to money and I have the letter, I was just confused about what exactly to ask for. I'm going to send this one today (I need some extra cash asap) and then see if I can sort out the rent thing later.

Can't you use skype or something? Shouldn't cost more than a few pence.

Hamlet

Noopti wrote: »

Did this last year and they said I owed them 300 odd quid, but that they "won't be collecting it at this time". No wonder the country is in a jock!

Oh, and someone mentioned something about PRSI being overpaid? What's the story with that?

between 2007 and 2010 they incorrectly charged some people at the higher rate.

IIRC you have to be in employment for at least 20 wks of any of the yrs and earn less than €25k. you need to send a letter asking them to check and quote your pps number.

contact details are:

PRSI Refunds Section,
Department of Social Protection,
Oisin House,
212-213 Pearse Street,
Dublin 2.

Tel: (01) 673 2586

sensibleken

Noopti wrote: »

Did this last year and they said I owed them 300 odd quid, but that they "won't be collecting it at this time". No wonder the country is in a jock!

Oh, and someone mentioned something about PRSI being overpaid? What's the story with that?

I thought it was 250 but they dont collect that because it costs more to get back that what would be gained

Alan b.

got 15grand in one lump sum last year.

Mr Benevolent

Just got told I'm getting €380. Woo!

ahyeahok

I filled it out and the rent tax looks promising. Do i get as quoted or can there be changes?
Big thanks OP for posting this, i had meant to do this for ages but kept putting it off. But its easier when someone puts links in front of you as you browse boards

westendgirlie

No word from Izzy. Is he off on a cruise spending his refund?

Or locked up for tax evasion?

watna

I'm pretty sure Izzy is a she.

But yes, I'd imagine she/he's languishing in jail now after getting a whopping tax bill, just biding his/her time for when she/he can come and hunt down the folk of After Hours!

MungBean

watna wrote: »

I'm pretty sure Izzy is a she.

But yes, I'd imagine she/he's languishing in jail now after getting a whopping tax bill, just biding his/her time for when she/he can come and hunt down the folk of After Hours!

I clearly stated in the OP that I wouldnt be responsible so if I get murdered it wont be one bit fair :mad:

watna

I get daily emails from a site called "now I know" which tells you interesting things. This one made me think of this thread

http://dlewis.net/nik-archives/tax-refund/

The minimum wage in the United States is $7.25 per hour. It is €6.66 per hour in the United Kingdom and €8.40 per hour for some trades in Germany.

In 2004, Juergen Graefe, a German lawyer, did about an hour of work and earned a bit more than that. No, make that a lot more than €8.40 — his fee came out to €440,234 (about $570,000 at the time).

In 2001, a German pensioner went into the tax collector’s office to fill out his tax return. He put down an annual income of €11,000 — which, it turns out, was an error. He filed a correction, restating his income to be €17,000. Unfortunately, the tax official working on his paperwork failed to enter the correction properly. Instead, the pensioner’s income was listed at an absurd €1,100,017,000 — the GDP of a tiny country.

Given those “earnings,” the pensioner’s tax bill came in at €287 million and change.

Clearing up the error was not hard. The pensioner’s lawyer, Dr. Graefe, simply wrote a letter to the German tax authorities explaining the error. His client’s tax liability was corrected and he went on with his life. Dr. Graefe, thereafter, looked to collect his fee.

In the United States, typically, the client pays the fee for services provided, and in a matter like this, the fee would (likely) be an hourly one; the American equivalent of Dr. Graefe would probably earn $100 or so. Not bad. But in Germany, the law holds that when an attorney wins such a reduction, the lawyer’s fee — paid for by the tax man — is a percentage of said reduction. In this case, Graefe’s cut should have been about €450,000, but of course, the tax department disputed this amount as excessive.

The court agreed with Graefe, who collected his world-record fee.

Bonus fact: Before 1999, it was legal in Germany to bribe foreign public officials — and companies were able to deduct any such bribes (as a “business expense”) from their tax returns.

How's that for a tax refund?!

I haven't heard yet. They said it would be a few weeks. Keeping my fingers crossed, unless yer man at the tax office outright lied to me, I should be owed something at least!

lau1247

Wyatt Slow Bucket wrote: »

I haven't heard yet. They said it would be a few weeks. Keeping my fingers crossed, unless yer man at the tax office outright lied to me, I should be owed something at least!

It'll be a week i'd say.. got mine in the said time period