Limits on Revenue's Gathering Powers

fed up sick and tired

Don't even know how to phrase this, but here goes...

Wife started a new job a couple of months ago. Was on emergency tax, all that got sorted out and is now on the correct weekly deduction.

Two weeks ago received advice over the phone from the tax office that a rebate was due.

Today, wages were down by 200 euro. Called revenue and a different person said that a rebate was misinformation, and that the money was indeed owed to them.

Apologised for it all being taken today in one go, and that it should not have been.

The amount left in the wage packet would leave a lot of people in serious, serious difficulty for the week, if they were on a paypacket by paypacket basis.

We're ok as we have good savings, but to ask the question on principle...

can Revenue seriously jeopardise people like this ? Are there no minimum amounts a person can be left with in their pay-packet that is untouchable ?

Thanks in advance for information.

gerrybbadd

fed up sick and tired wrote: »

Don't even know how to phrase this, but here goes...

Wife started a new job a couple of months ago. Was on emergency tax, all that got sorted out and is now on the correct weekly deduction.

Two weeks ago received advice over the phone from the tax office that a rebate was due.

Today, wages were down by 200 euro. Called revenue and a different person said that a rebate was misinformation, and that the money was indeed owed to them.

Apologised for it all being taken today in one go, and that it should not have been.

The amount left in the wage packet would leave a lot of people in serious, serious difficulty for the week, if they were on a paypacket by paypacket basis.

We're ok as we have good savings, but to ask the question on principle...

can Revenue seriously jeopardise people like this ? Are there no minimum amounts a person can be left with in their pay-packet that is untouchable ?

Thanks in advance for information.

While Revenue can reduce tax credits to account for previous year underpayments, it's meant to be done on what's called a week 1 basis. This prevents backdating, and avoids a hardship situation.

That being said, if Revenue do not apply the Week 1 Basis, there is a failsafe clause that the employer can apply a Week 1 Basis, where it is obvious that there would be a large reduction in wages, such as your wife has experienced.

So it seems there was a failure on Revenue's side, and the employers side in obligation. Unfortunately though, the tax, if due, cannot be given back at this stage, if already collected.

thesimpsons

agree with gerrybbadd - Revenue need to recoup the lost taxation and employers have to act on the figures given by Revenue. But employer can also put the employee on a Week 1 basis to ensure that the employee doesn't suffer undue hardship in one week's wage package. Whoever ran the payroll should really have looked at the figures and seen this

fed up sick and tired

Excellent information from both of you, and sincere thanks.