A professional tax engagement should be clear before work begins. Our process is designed to establish the problem, identify the records required, agree the scope and then carry the tax work through to the agreed output.
Not every case requires exactly the same documents or deliverables, but the structure below keeps responsibilities and expectations clear.
We establish the issue, tax years involved, any live deadline and whether the matter falls within the work we undertake.
Where we can act, the necessary client details, identification and proof of address are obtained and the relevant acceptance checks are completed.
The service, fee, responsibilities and deliverables are confirmed in the engagement documentation before substantive professional work begins.
We request the records relevant to the engagement rather than asking every client for the same generic document pack.
The chronology, records, calculations and applicable tax treatment are reviewed before the agreed return, advice or HMRC response is finalised.
Where client approval is required, the relevant document is sent for approval before filing. Any further implementation or HMRC correspondence is then handled within scope.
A tax return engagement does not automatically include a later HMRC investigation. Written advice does not automatically include implementing a transaction. Company accounts do not automatically include the director's personal tax return.
Those distinctions protect both the client and the adviser because there is a clear record of what work has actually been agreed.
The return, calculation, letter, written advice or other output should be identified before work begins.
Clients remain responsible for providing complete, accurate and timely information relevant to the engagement.
Filing, payment, transaction and HMRC deadlines should be identified as early as possible.
If the facts reveal a materially wider problem, the additional work should be agreed rather than assumed.
These pages explain who is involved, how information is protected and how specialist work can be coordinated with an existing accountant.
The important distinction is between making an enquiry and entering into an engagement for defined professional work.
Professional work starts after the client has been accepted, the necessary onboarding steps have been completed and the service and scope have been agreed. Sending an initial enquiry or documents does not by itself create an engagement.
No. The records requested depend on the work. A Capital Gains Tax calculation, HMRC investigation, Corporation Tax return and residence review all require different evidence.
Where client approval is required, the relevant return or document is provided for approval before submission. Any questions or material assumptions can then be addressed before filing.
If the records reveal a materially wider issue, the additional work should be discussed and scoped rather than simply added without agreement.
Yes, where HMRC representation forms part of the engagement and the appropriate authority is in place. The scope should identify whether correspondence with HMRC is included.
