HMRC often sends nudge letters to individuals who may not have declared income or capital gains, and this time, it is targeting profits from letting activities and capital gains from the sale of properties. Anyone who receives such a letter will be asked to check that they have correctly reported property income and/or capital gains and paid any tax due. If they haven’t, individuals can either call HMRC or use an online disclosure facility to bring their tax affairs up to date. This should be done as soon as possible and must be done within 30 days of the date of the letter.

Those that have correctly reported and paid their taxes still need to respond to HMRC to confirm as such within 30 days of the date of the letter. Otherwise, HMRC will open a compliance check which could lead to higher penalties if tax has been underpaid.