I'm so worried and upset and horrified this is ok

[pinkrosebuds69]

HMRC have just cut my working tax credits completely . I am self employed,.
I don't understand I sent them all the paperwork for the necessary checks . All early and renewal early along side my tax return 6 months before the deadline .

Apparently they "don't have enough evidence to support my hours ) and have cut them completely .
I only know this from calling up myself to check .
This decision was made with no call to me. The decision was sent out last Tuesday but I've still not received ( apparently it can take 7-10 days )
Until I have the letter apparently I can't appeal or even question it .

I am in tears , I need my tax credits to pay child care and for food I don't know what to do or where to turn or what I've done wrong. I can't buy any food now tomorrow for the week .

Speak to cab. Write them a very strong letter telling them they're wrong.

Do you make a profit? It says here on the tax credits website;

www.gov.uk/working-tax-credit/eligibility

What counts as work
Your work can be:

for someone else, as a worker or employee
as someone who’s self-employed
a mixture of the two

If you’re self-employed
Some self-employed people are not eligible for Working Tax Credit. To qualify, your self-employed work must aim to make a profit. It must also be commercial, regular and organised.

This means you may not qualify if you don’t:

make a profit or have clear plans to make one
work regularly
keep business records, such as receipts and invoices
follow any regulations that apply to your work, for example having the right licence or insurance

If the average hourly profit from your self-employed work is less than the National Minimum Wage, the Tax Credit Office may ask you to provide:

business records
your business plan - find out how to write a business plan
details of the day-to-day running of your business
evidence that you’ve promoted your business - such as advertisements or flyers

What work do you do and how many hours per week ?

I have included all of that .
I make a profit and have sent them detailed books , invoices . Etc

It is roughly the same as last year so I thought simple . I can't understand and can't understand how they can cut it without even telling me

What do you do for self-employment? Can you do some extra hours or chase up some debtors?

No I can't do anything else right now ,
I just don't understand how they can do this without even communicating with me .

It's going to be a long night until 9am tomorrow.

Plus factor in you also have to pay for the phone call, it's not cheap, so the department is making a profit from your desperate inquiries.

This is happening at an alarming rate. People throughout the country have had benefits cut by letter, just like that. No previous letter to say that in 3 months the money will be gone. It's gone and then the letter arrives.

Get a letter to go to the nearest foodbank and get food from them.

Horrific that this money can be just cut off in such a callous way.

It's difficult to give opinion here because there are so few facts.
Ring them tomorrow morning. NOTHING will be solved tonight.

I provide consultation to clients .
I have provided books , invoices , breakdown of hours

Does anyone have any advice about any other ways I can prove evidence of hours ?

what do you do? how many hours and how much do you earn?

TBH, in a way i don't think this is a bad thing - I knows few people who ran their own business, always claim to make minimum profit to rank in maximum in tax credits and other benefits.

It is just a shame if it hits those who do it the honest way.

They can cut it like that and then it's up to you to chase it. Find out if your area is under universal benefit though the letter should have told you.

What does the letter say exactly?

Do you make a small profit that works out at less than minimum wage? You say this year was more or less the same as last year. Now if you are not making minimum wage they want you to show how you are going to increase your income i.e. With a business plan

They are really clamping down on self employed people who they deem not to be making enough profit or have a viable business.
I don't think it's about evidence of hours but that you are making at least minimum wage per hour.
For many years people have been claiming to work x number of hours to get working tax credits( which can amount to a considerable amount of money) yet profits mean they are actually working for £2/3 an hour. If this is what has been happening in your business then this maybe why they have stopped.

Then you should report them Miss

Presumably you still get child tax credits? And child benefit?

I actually did. and not sure how this is relevant to this thread

They are clamping down on everyone, regardless of what benefit they receive. Everyone is deemed to be fiddling the system. Even carers.

I have not received the letter !!!

I only know as I called them to see what was going on and they said they could see it was cut but had no knowledge as the department is shut

Elendon - report them for what? People genuinely can make a very small profit in their small business and until recently as long as they meet the requirements to claim working tax credits they will get them. However now HMRC have decided to close the loophole. It's not really that people have been claiming fraudulently just that the loophole is being closed and rightly so.

DP and I have our own little business, work 10-2 and make about 8.5k a year between us (gradually increasing and hopefully will increase loads more once youngest is in secondary) HMRC have never asked us for proof.
Have you checked you submitted the right numbers? Maybe you put a decimal in the wrong place?

Are you saying that your business did make more then NMW per hour? What are your circumstances, are you a lone parent ? what was your income last year?

Elendon - report them for what? People genuinely can make a very small profit in their small business

but some fiddle with the figures to increase tax credits.

Yes Miss- unfortunately it's the ones who do fiddle any kind of benefit claim that make it so much worse for others. This is why it is so hard for disability benefit claimants having to go through assesments etc.

Use the online manage my tax credits and use online chat it's easier to get an answer