You can appeal against most HMRC information notices, but not against a requirement to produce your statutory records and not against any notice the tribunal approved in advance. A taxpayer can appeal on any ground, such as the information not being reasonably required; a third party can only argue that complying would be unduly onerous. The appeal must be made in writing to the officer within 30 days of the notice.

Which HMRC information notices can be appealed?

Information notices are issued under Schedule 36 to the Finance Act 2008. The appeal rights are in Part 5 of that Schedule and depend on the type of notice. A taxpayer notice under paragraph 1, sent to the person whose tax position is being checked, can be appealed against as a whole or requirement by requirement (paragraph 29). A third party notice under paragraph 2, sent to someone else such as a bank, supplier or adviser, can be appealed only on the ground that complying would be unduly onerous (paragraph 30). An identity unknown notice under paragraph 5 carries the same single ground (paragraph 31).

HMRC’s Compliance Handbook at CH229950 sets out the position in a table. It confirms there is no appeal against any notice of inspection, against a taxpayer notice that refers only to records about the supply of goods or services or the importation of goods in the course of business, or against any notice approved by the tribunal. For background on how the notices work in practice, see our guide to the Schedule 36 information notice.

Why can you not challenge a request for statutory records?

Paragraphs 29(2) and 30(2) remove the right of appeal against a requirement to provide information or produce a document that forms part of the taxpayer’s statutory records. Paragraph 62 defines statutory records as information and documents a person must keep and preserve under the Taxes Acts or any other enactment relating to a tax. The logic is simple: if the law already obliges you to keep a record for tax purposes, HMRC is entitled to see it.

There are limits. Business records become statutory records as soon as they are created, but records kept for non business purposes only become statutory records once the chargeable period they relate to has ended (paragraph 62(2) and CH21700). Records also stop being statutory records once the period for which they must be preserved has expired. If you dispute whether something is a statutory record at all, CH21700 says that where there is no appeal against the notice the question can be tested on an appeal against a penalty for not complying, or by judicial review.

What grounds can a taxpayer argue?

A taxpayer appeal is not limited to particular grounds, but in practice successful arguments tend to rest on the conditions and restrictions written into Schedule 36 itself.

  • Not reasonably required. Paragraph 1 only allows a notice for information or documents reasonably required to check the tax position or collect a tax debt. HMRC’s own guidance at CH21620 says information can only be reasonably required where it could affect a person’s tax position, and that the officer must be able to show why it may help decide the correct position within the time limits for making an assessment.
  • Not in your possession or power. Paragraph 18 limits a notice to documents in your possession or power. CH22120 explains that power includes the ability to obtain a document from someone else, but you have not failed to comply if you can show the document is outside your possession and power.
  • Old documents. Under paragraph 20 a notice cannot require a document that originates wholly more than six years before the notice unless it is given by, or with the agreement of, an authorised officer.
  • Return already filed and no enquiry open. Paragraph 21 stops HMRC issuing a taxpayer notice to check an income tax, capital gains tax or corporation tax return unless one of its conditions applies, for example an open enquiry or a reason to suspect an under assessment.
  • Protected material. Paragraphs 19 and 23 to 25 exclude material relating to the conduct of a pending tax appeal, journalistic material, personal records, legally privileged material, and certain auditor and tax adviser papers.
  • Deceased taxpayers. Paragraph 22 bars a notice given more than four years after the person’s death.

Unreasonable deadlines are also worth raising. Paragraph 7 requires the period for compliance to be reasonably specified, and CH23420 says HMRC should consider any reasonable request for more time.

What does unduly onerous mean for a third party?

HMRC’s guidance at CH24420 says a notice or requirement is unduly onerous if the burden on the recipient is disproportionately greater than the benefit expected from having the information. The burden is usually the time and cost of searching archives, extracting data or reviewing documents for protected content. A third party appeal is therefore an argument about proportionality and scope, not about whether the taxpayer owes tax. Third party notices are also subject to the rule in paragraph 3 that HMRC needs either the taxpayer’s agreement or tribunal approval before issuing one; more on this is in our guide to third party information notices.

How do you appeal and what are the time limits?

Paragraph 32 requires notice of appeal to be given in writing, before the end of 30 days beginning with the date the information notice was given, to the officer who gave it, stating the grounds. CH24340 adds that the normal direct tax appeal procedure applies, whichever tax is being checked, so the appeal can be settled by agreement, taken to an HMRC review or notified to the tribunal. The usual route is described in our guide to statutory review and the tax tribunal, and missed deadlines are covered in late appeals to HMRC.

The tribunal can confirm, vary or set aside the notice or any requirement in it. If it confirms or varies, you must comply within the period the tribunal sets or, if it sets none, within a period an officer reasonably specifies in writing. Under paragraph 32(5) the tribunal’s decision on an information notice appeal is final, so there is no onward appeal.

An appeal against the whole notice suspends the duty to comply until the appeal is decided. Where you appeal only some requirements, CH24320 says you must still comply with the rest, including any requirement to produce statutory records.

What if the tribunal approved the notice?

HMRC can ask the tribunal to approve a notice in advance under paragraph 3. Before approving, the tribunal must be satisfied the officer is justified, and normally the recipient must have been told the information is needed and given a chance to make representations, a summary of which goes to the tribunal. The notice must state that it was approved (paragraph 6(3)). Once approved, there is no appeal; CH24360 says any challenge would have to be by judicial review. This is why representations made when HMRC first asks informally are so important: they may be the only submission the tribunal sees.

What happens if you simply do not comply?

Paragraph 39 imposes a penalty of £300 for failing to comply with an information notice, and paragraph 40 allows further daily penalties of up to £60 for each day the failure continues after that penalty is imposed. Providing inaccurate information carelessly or deliberately can attract a penalty of up to £3,000 per inaccuracy under paragraph 40A. Penalties do not arise if you have a reasonable excuse (paragraph 45) or if you complied within any extra time an officer allowed (paragraph 44). Penalty decisions can themselves be appealed in writing within 30 days under paragraphs 47 and 48.

How might an appeal work in practice?

Illustration only. A sole trader under enquiry into a 2023 to 2024 return receives a taxpayer notice requiring business bank statements, the sales ledger, personal savings account statements for ten years and copies of correspondence with his solicitor about a property purchase. He produces the bank statements and sales ledger, which are statutory records with no appeal right. He appeals in writing within 30 days against the remaining items, arguing that savings statements going back ten years are not reasonably required for a single year enquiry and that documents wholly more than six years old need an authorised officer’s agreement, and that the solicitor’s correspondence is privileged. The officer narrows the request to two years of savings statements and withdraws the solicitor item, and the appeal is settled by agreement without a hearing.

What mistakes do people make?

  • Appealing against everything, including statutory records, and then producing nothing. The records must still be produced, and penalties can follow.
  • Missing the 30 day window because the notice sat with the client and not the adviser.
  • Arguing that the tax is not owed. An information notice appeal is about the notice, not the liability.
  • Ignoring the informal request. If HMRC later seeks tribunal approval, your earlier representations shape what the tribunal sees, and approval removes the appeal right.
  • Treating confidentiality as a ground on its own. The Schedule 36 restrictions are specific, and general confidentiality is not one of them.

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Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 19 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.