Summary
An HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) enquiry notice was held to be validly given to the taxpayer even though he did not receive it, because the enquiry was known to his agents and this was held to be sufficient notice to the taxpayer.
Background
HMRC issued a closure notice to amend the appellant’s tax return for 2003/04. The appellant appealed. A preliminary issue arose for the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) about whether HMRC had properly opened the tax return enquiry.
The appellant, his wife and children lived at a property in Cumbria from about 1991. In around October 2001, the appellant took a lease of a property in Cheshire (Heybridge Lane), to stay there while away on business. He stayed at Heybridge Lane at various times between October 2003 and August 2004. In August 2004, following separation from his wife, the appellant bought another property in
