Eva

I’m planning a one-month trip around Asia with a friend who currently lives in Hong Kong. I will be paying in advance for car rental and accommodation, which my friend intends to pay the money back to me by transferring the amount (approximately £1,000 - £2,000) from her Hong Kong bank account to mine. This transfer isnot a gift or income. Do I need to declare this money to HMRC, or should I include any specific remarks when receiving it? Also, would it be wise to keep receipts as a record? Thank you.

I’ve bought some books (books that introduce castles ) and stationeries from different sellers in Japan for personal use. Since the Japanese sellers do not ship internationally, I used a local Japanese courier to collect, repackage, and ship the items to the UK. The courier has informed me that they won't pay the duty tax and VAT on my behalf, so I will need to pay these myself when the items arrive in the UK. I understand that books bought from outside the UK are exempt from VAT and duty tax. If I am charged VAT and duty on all the items, including the exempt books, how can I get a refund? 1)There are two forms available for tax refunds: form C285 for CDS and form C285 for CHIEF. Which form do I need to fill out for the refund, and does it depend on the form used by the local Japanese courier to ship to the UK? 2)I am confused about the information needed to complete the C285 form. It asks for "Representative or Declarant details," which is the company that invoiced me. Does this refer to the local Japanese courier that I paid for shipping from Japan to the UK, or the UK courier that may later ask me to pay the VAT and duty charges before delivering the goods to me? 3)For the information I need to fill in on the C285 form, like the EPU number or EORI number, should I ask the courier for this information, or are there any links provided by HMRC that can help me find it? Thank you for your time

This is my first time registering for self-assessment. After receiving my UTA number, I filed online and received an email confirming that HMRC successfully received my self-assessment tax return on 25 June 2024 at 16:34. The email said HMRC would process the tax return, which could take up to 72 hours to appear in my online account. However, today (28 June 2024), I received a letter dated 27 June, asking me to complete a self-assessment tax return. My online account is still blank and does not show that HMRC has received my tax return. Do I need to file again?