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Original poster

HMRC mistakenly believe I live abroad

103 replies

cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 20:58

HMRC have sent me a letter telling me they are stopping my child benefit as they believe I moved abroad 18months ago and didn’t return to the UK. I did go away on the date in question and did return and have since been abroad 4 times, (on a renewed passport though). For some reason border control have not recorded it.

Has anyone else had this problem and how did they solve it.
I don’t have the return plane ticket as I was a staff member on a school trip and it was booked through a school trip company so don’t have any emails or credit card receipts of booking the flight. Also I probably just threw the ticket away. Short of getting 50 teens to write me a note to say I was on the flight I’m not sure what to do.

OP posts:
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6
TheCurious0range · 02/10/2025 21:00

Surely you can get evidence of your payslips to show you have been working in a school in the UK?

KvotheTheBloodless · 02/10/2025 21:02

Can't you just get the school to provide the records? Surely they must keep them? The Head would be better writing a letter stating you have been employed at the school and not abroad.

Also, haven't you been paying tax all that time? Surely HMRC have your employment records?

ResusciAnnie · 02/10/2025 21:03

Just ring them and explain. They’ll no doubt tell you to send in pay slips etc. It’s a fucking nightmare to get through to HMRC but when you do get through to a person they’re always helpful and pleasant IME.

BadgernTheGarden · 02/10/2025 21:03

Have you explained to HMRC? If you are working in a school I'm sure they will vouch for you.

ResusciAnnie · 02/10/2025 21:04

Also sounds like there’s a problem with your new passport’s barcode or whatever they scan, for it not to have registered FOUR times ?! Check that out!

Poshjock · 02/10/2025 21:08

I don't have experience of your specific situation, but in dealings with HMRC, they will consider all evidence so flip this on its head. You don't have to prove you returned to UK exclusively by producing plane tickets, you just need to show evidence of your life within UK - basically your bank statement with electronic footprint of your movement through your life. You aren't swiping your card in Tesco every week when you live abroad are you? Coupled with your evidence of house ownership/rental, car - and no evidence of a life outside of UK you should be ok.

Original poster
cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 21:10

Thanks, I’ve emailed my Headteacher tonight to ask for a letter. Couldn’t get through to HMRC tonight when I got home. I can’t believe they don’t correlate tax records etc.
I agree that there must be something wrong with my passport; it doesn’t make sense.
got another trip coming up soon so that will be interesting.

OP posts:
ChrisMartinsKisskam · 02/10/2025 21:32

Why would HMRC even be aware that you have left the country

you don’t have to tell them

are you on a visa to work here

SummerFeverVenice · 02/10/2025 21:33

cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 20:58

HMRC have sent me a letter telling me they are stopping my child benefit as they believe I moved abroad 18months ago and didn’t return to the UK. I did go away on the date in question and did return and have since been abroad 4 times, (on a renewed passport though). For some reason border control have not recorded it.

Has anyone else had this problem and how did they solve it.
I don’t have the return plane ticket as I was a staff member on a school trip and it was booked through a school trip company so don’t have any emails or credit card receipts of booking the flight. Also I probably just threw the ticket away. Short of getting 50 teens to write me a note to say I was on the flight I’m not sure what to do.

You should have stamps in your passport showing you coming and going,
Send copies of those pages to them

Note, to be considered habitually resident in the UK you have to be here 26 weeks out of 52 weeks (rolling). So if your trips add up to more than that, you become ineligible for benefits.

AmpleLilacQuail · 02/10/2025 21:34

Annoyingly the HMRC depts don’t really ‘speak’ to each other like you would expect they would! You just need to call them and tell them, if they need more proof they’ll ask for it.

Original poster
cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 21:52

ChrisMartinsKisskam · 02/10/2025 21:32

Why would HMRC even be aware that you have left the country

you don’t have to tell them

are you on a visa to work here

No, born here.
Apparently HMRC are given exit/entry info by immigration/ border control. However the holiday in question is 18 months ago! It’s a mystery and an annoying stressful one.

OP posts:
Original poster
cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 21:53

SummerFeverVenice · 02/10/2025 21:33

You should have stamps in your passport showing you coming and going,
Send copies of those pages to them

Note, to be considered habitually resident in the UK you have to be here 26 weeks out of 52 weeks (rolling). So if your trips add up to more than that, you become ineligible for benefits.

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They are only short trips,( unfortunately), probably no more than 6 weeks over 18 months so no reason to get flagged.
yes, will send copies of the passport.

OP posts:
SummerFeverVenice · 02/10/2025 22:01

cherrypiesally · 02/10/2025 21:53

They are only short trips,( unfortunately), probably no more than 6 weeks over 18 months so no reason to get flagged.
yes, will send copies of the passport.

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Talk to them first. A more secure way would be to go to the job centre and a staff member check your passport stamps. They used to let HMRC do things like that.

Ohthatsabitshit · 02/10/2025 22:31

This is interesting. Do you have a particularly foreign sounding name? Is there any reason they’d think you’d emigrated somewhere?

NCJD · 02/10/2025 22:38

Yep. DH (who our child benefit is paid to) got exactly this letter about 2 weeks ago. It said they had no proof he’d returned back to the UK after a week holiday to Greece 3 years ago. Haven’t been abroad since and he is British (since birth). Got asked to send various things like a confirmation letter from the GP(?). I can’t remember the specifics but can update tomorrow - believe it’s still grumbling on though.

P00hsticks · 03/10/2025 20:41

If you've been working in the UK since then surely HMRC will be able to see evidence of your income tax and NI deductions as submitted by your employers payroll ?

Original poster
cherrypiesally · 03/10/2025 20:53

Ohthatsabitshit · 02/10/2025 22:31

This is interesting. Do you have a particularly foreign sounding name? Is there any reason they’d think you’d emigrated somewhere?

completely British heritage name. Never lived abroad or even worked outside my area.

OP posts:
Original poster
cherrypiesally · 03/10/2025 20:55

P00hsticks · 03/10/2025 20:41

If you've been working in the UK since then surely HMRC will be able to see evidence of your income tax and NI deductions as submitted by your employers payroll ?

You’d think it was this easy; obviously the departments don’t communicated. Have worked here for 25yrs.

OP posts:
LadyLapsang · 03/10/2025 22:18

Unless there are unusual circumstances this should be sorted out quickly. You work in a local workplace, and most likely your child is in a local school or childcare / early education. Does your DH work in a workplace? Do either of you use a different name in your passport and at work or for your claim?

Original poster
cherrypiesally · 04/10/2025 06:33

LadyLapsang · 03/10/2025 22:18

Unless there are unusual circumstances this should be sorted out quickly. You work in a local workplace, and most likely your child is in a local school or childcare / early education. Does your DH work in a workplace? Do either of you use a different name in your passport and at work or for your claim?

All same names. I think I was just panicking and annoyed. It should be simple to sort; just another admin job to deal with.

OP posts:
Nearlyadoctor · 04/10/2025 08:04

I had exactly the same thing happen about 18 months ago, rang HMRC and was told told needed to provide proof I re entered the country ( had only been to Crete for a week). A letter from dd’s headteacher, payslips etc etc. I explained surely she could just check tax records etc , nope not good enough.
Having spent 2 hours sorting it all rang back and got a very nice man, as needed address where to send/email everything , who said don’t be ridiculous if you give me your employers details I can cross check and then sorted it over the phone - just depends who you get.

CandidHedgehog · 05/10/2025 17:23

SummerFeverVenice · 02/10/2025 21:33

You should have stamps in your passport showing you coming and going,
Send copies of those pages to them

Note, to be considered habitually resident in the UK you have to be here 26 weeks out of 52 weeks (rolling). So if your trips add up to more than that, you become ineligible for benefits.

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Show quote history

Many countries have electronic gates - I’ve travelled internationally multiple times on mine and it has only two actual stamps.

My3loves · 05/10/2025 17:28

I have had the same letter this week, stopping my child benefit because they believed my children left the country in 2023. We did have a holiday booked in 2023 but however ended up cancelling the holiday, so HMRC am saying they have no evidence of my children returning to the UK and am asking for bank statements from the time ect to prove I was in the UK. I'm honestly finding it all abit stressful.

NCJD · 05/10/2025 20:04

Still grumbling on with us as well despite sending everything back they requested. Have been promised a rebate if/when found in our favour.

I’m not sure what’s worse to be honest. The fact the system is so bad that they don’t believe we returned home from a week’s package holiday 2.5 years ago despite paying tax and NI monthly…or that the small amount of fraudulent claimers are taking 2.5 years to be caught…

My3loves · 05/10/2025 20:22

@NCJD did they also request bank statements from the time you was on holiday?