Help! My Tax Isn't Being Paid
Verifying that tax is or is not being paid
Firstly, ensure that tax really is not being paid correctly. For this you will need to consult your timesheets, payslips, Key Information Document (KID), your HMRC online tax account and possibly your contract.
Your payslips and KID should tell you what deductions should be and are being made from the rate. This should tell you how much tax should have been paid to HMRC. If the rate or deductions are incorrect, double-check the contract to make sure there is no mention of it in there.
Check your HMRC online tax account to determine what tax has been paid (if any) and when. You should then be able to construct a date range of when taxes were and were not paid, and what discrepancies there were on a month-by-month basis.
Check it's not an honest mistake
Now you have an exact timeline and amounts in a list, present this to your umbrella or agency. There may have been a clerical mistake there, which can hopefully be rectified relatively quickly and easily.
If the payroll suggests the tax was paid to HMRC, then try to obtain all the reference numbers, dates and amounts paid. You can then take this to HMRC to see if there is a mistake there.
Alert your client
Assuming there is no mistake, you should next alert your client. This is not your clients fault, or in fact any of their concern, but you should tell them because you should not continue to work until you can resolve the issue (or can sign up with another umbrella, and have the client switch to using them).
Consult with a Professional Specialist
Trying to recover the lost money from a reluctant umbrella or agency is not something you should attempt on your own. Nor is dealing with the inevitable problems at HMRC. For these tasks you should seek specialist professional help.
HMRC
We do not suggest you should alert HMRC if you suspect a tax problem. Instead, let the professionals do this for you at the correct time. HMRC might sound like they're here to help and that they you work things out, but actually are looking for you to catch yourself out. Once you do this, they will take a very different approach with you, which is much harder to work with or to get out of. Let the professionals talk to HMRC on your behalf.