The legislation does not prescribe a method, but paragraph 44 only helps if an officer has actually allowed further time, so the request needs to produce a clear answer. In practice: write to the officer named on the notice, quoting its reference, well before the deadline; explain specifically why the time allowed is not enough, for example archived records, a third party holding papers, illness or a seasonal peak; propose a realistic new date, and offer to send what is already available now; ask the officer to confirm the new date in writing, and keep a record of any telephone agreement; if the burden of the request is the real problem, raise it as a point about the scope of the notice rather than only about time. Partial delivery is worthwhile. CH26220 says that where some but not all material has arrived, the officer considers whether what has been provided is enough to complete the check; if it is, no further action is taken to obtain the rest. CH23480 also says officers may accept the same information in a different form, such as bank statements in place of dividend vouchers, if it is sufficient.

Asking for more time to comply with an information notice

Q: How might it work?

Illustration only. A builder receives a taxpayer notice dated 2 June asking for three years of bank statements and purchase invoices by 2 July. Two years of invoices are in storage with a former bookkeeper. On 16 June the builder's adviser emails the officer, sends the bank statements and the current year's invoices, and asks for the stored invoices to be due on 1 August. The officer replies agreeing 1 August. The invoices arrive on 28 July. Because they arrived within the further time allowed, paragraph 44 means no penalty can arise. Had the adviser waited until 3 July to ask, the builder would have been exposed to the £300 penalty unless HMRC accepted a reasonable excuse.

If you cannot meet the deadline in an HMRC information notice, contact the officer who issued it before the date passes and ask for more time. Under paragraph 44 of Schedule 36 to the Finance Act 2008, no £300 or daily penalty arises if you comply within any further time an officer has allowed. If the request is refused or not answered, the only protection is a reasonable excuse, so an early, specific request is the safest course.

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How is the deadline in a notice set?

Paragraph 7(1) requires the recipient to provide the information or documents within the period, and at the time, by the means and in the form, reasonably specified in the notice. HMRC’s Compliance Handbook at CH23420 says there is no minimum period, but the period must be reasonable, taking account of what is being asked for, how easy it is to produce and time in the post. As a rule of thumb it suggests most material could be provided within 30 days of the notice, but that a longer period may be needed around a business’s seasonal peaks, and that someone who must retrieve and sift archived documents might need far longer.

The notice itself must say how and when to give HMRC what it needs, and HMRC’s factsheet CC/FS2 tells recipients that if they need more time, they should contact the officer who gave them the notice. For the background to notices in general, see our guide to the Schedule 36 information notice.

Can HMRC extend the deadline?

Yes. There is no formal application form, but the law recognises extensions. Paragraph 44 says that a failure to do something within a limited period does not give rise to a penalty under paragraph 39 or 40 if the person did it within such further time, if any, as an officer of Revenue and Customs may have allowed.

CH23420 tells officers to consider carefully any reasonable request for more time and, where appropriate, to extend the period to take account of new or relevant factors. CH26220 confirms that if HMRC has agreed more time, the person will have complied with the notice if they produce the material within the further period. HMRC’s general compliance check factsheet CC/FS1a says HMRC may allow extra time if there is a good reason, giving serious illness or the death of someone close as examples.

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How should you ask?

The legislation does not prescribe a method, but paragraph 44 only helps if an officer has actually allowed further time, so the request needs to produce a clear answer. In practice:

write to the officer named on the notice, quoting its reference, well before the deadline;
explain specifically why the time allowed is not enough, for example archived records, a third party holding papers, illness or a seasonal peak;
propose a realistic new date, and offer to send what is already available now;
ask the officer to confirm the new date in writing, and keep a record of any telephone agreement;
if the burden of the request is the real problem, raise it as a point about the scope of the notice rather than only about time.

Partial delivery is worthwhile. CH26220 says that where some but not all material has arrived, the officer considers whether what has been provided is enough to complete the check; if it is, no further action is taken to obtain the rest. CH23480 also says officers may accept the same information in a different form, such as bank statements in place of dividend vouchers, if it is sufficient.

How do the penalties build up?

Missing the deadline can lead to a £300 penalty under paragraph 39. Daily penalties of up to £60 a day under paragraph 40 can follow only once the initial penalty has been assessed and the failure continues after that (CH26620 and CH26660). CH26660 says daily penalties should be assessed regularly and not for any period after the notice has been complied with. The full ladder, including the tax related penalty, is in our guide to penalties for not complying with an information notice.

That sequence gives some breathing space: a short delay while an extension is being discussed will not normally produce daily penalties unless HMRC has first assessed the £300 penalty. It is not a reason to wait, because the £300 penalty can be assessed as soon as the date passes.

What protects you while a request is being considered?

Nothing in Schedule 36 suspends the deadline just because a request for more time has been made. If the officer agrees, paragraph 44 protects you provided you comply within the new period. If the officer refuses, or the date passes before an answer arrives, you need a reasonable excuse under paragraph 45.

Paragraph 45 removes liability to the £300 and daily penalties if you satisfy HMRC, or the tribunal on appeal, that you had a reasonable excuse. Insufficiency of funds is not an excuse unless caused by events outside your control, and reliance on another person is not an excuse unless you took reasonable care to avoid the failure. Where the excuse ends, you are treated as still having it only if you put the failure right without unreasonable delay. CH26360 gives bereavement, serious illness, loss of records through fire, flood or theft, computer breakdown and loss of key staff as possible examples.

CH26460 shows how the “without unreasonable delay” test works. In one of HMRC’s examples a trader whose premises flooded agreed to send records within four weeks of being allowed back in, but took three and a half months; that delay meant there was no reasonable excuse. In another, a trader in hospital agreed a revised date with the officer, met it, and had a reasonable excuse throughout.

Is appealing a way of getting more time?

An appeal is for disputing the notice, not for buying time, but it does affect the timetable. Notice of appeal must be given in writing to the officer within 30 days of the date the notice was given, stating the grounds (paragraph 32). CH24320 says that if the person appeals against the notice itself, they need not comply with its requirements until the appeal is decided; if the appeal covers only some requirements, the rest must still be met. There is no appeal against a requirement to produce statutory records or against a tribunal approved notice. If the tribunal confirms or varies the notice, paragraph 32(4) requires compliance within the period it specifies or, failing that, a period an officer reasonably specifies in writing. See appealing an information notice.

Withholding privileged documents has its own timetable: the list of withheld items must be served no later than 20 working days after the compliance date (see legal privilege and information notices).

How might it work?

Illustration only. A builder receives a taxpayer notice dated 2 June asking for three years of bank statements and purchase invoices by 2 July. Two years of invoices are in storage with a former bookkeeper. On 16 June the builder’s adviser emails the officer, sends the bank statements and the current year’s invoices, and asks for the stored invoices to be due on 1 August. The officer replies agreeing 1 August. The invoices arrive on 28 July. Because they arrived within the further time allowed, paragraph 44 means no penalty can arise. Had the adviser waited until 3 July to ask, the builder would have been exposed to the £300 penalty unless HMRC accepted a reasonable excuse.

What mistakes come up?

Assuming silence means agreement. Only time an officer has allowed counts.
Asking after the deadline has passed.
Giving a vague reason and no proposed date.
Sending nothing until everything is ready, rather than providing what is available.
Relying on an adviser to ask without checking that they did; reliance is an excuse only if you took reasonable care.
Treating an appeal against part of a notice as stopping the clock for the parts not under appeal.

An early conversation also helps more broadly in a compliance check, since cooperation can reduce penalties if something turns out to be wrong.

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Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.