SCOTTISH taxpayers have received an apology after they were wrongly given English tax codes when they moved into a new-build estate in Midlothian, The National can reveal.
HMRC has insisted the error will not affect the amount of income tax sent to the Scottish Government and those affected may have over or underpaid for the last financial year.
The issue affected residents of a new build Taylor Wimpy estate in Mauricewood, north of Penicuik, and the exact number of people affected is not known.
The National was informed about the issue by a resident, who did not wish to be identified.
He has underpaid tax and said he would need to pay an extra £10 per month to make up the difference.
The resident, who had moved from Edinburgh, said he was moved to make the issue public because he was concerned that the Scottish Government could have been short changed for income taxes collected north of the Border if the problem was widespread.
It is understood the Scottish Government is content the issue would not have an impact on the Scottish income tax take.
HMRC said the issue has now been resolved and that those affected have been contacted to inform them that they either owe money, or are due a tax rebate for overpaying.
A Scottish tax code is identifiable because it has an S at the beginning. The resident who contacted The National said he noticed upon moving to the new estate that his tax code lacked this, which means HMRC would consider the tax as having been paid in England.
Other people in the estate had found similar problems, he said.
Depending on earnings, workers can pay more or less tax depending on where they live in Britain.
Last year, workers earning £27,850 would pay the same regardless of whether they lived in England or Scotland, according to the Chartered Institute of Taxation.
Those earning less would pay less income tax in Scotland than in England, while those on higher incomes would pay more.
A spokesperson for HMRC said: “We’ve corrected the tax codes of residents from the estate and we apologise to those affected. Any overpaid or underpaid tax will be refunded or collected via PAYE as normal.
“People can check their code on the free HMRC app and online and if they think they’re on the wrong tax code, they should tell us by using their online personal tax account.”
