Applying to Settlement Scheme & problem with HMRC

[mradam]

Hello Everyone,

This is a question for a friend of mine.

- He is an EU National (Gemany)
- Has been resident in the UK for about 20 years
- He has no spouse and no dependents
- He is employed

He has an ongoing issue with the HMRC and was unsure whether he should apply to the Settlement Scheme now, or wait until the issue is resolved before applying; he fears that he would be refused or given Pre-Settled status if he applies now, because as part of the application you provide your National Insurance Number whereby they check your records with MHRC

The issue with HMRC is this:

They are saying he needs to pay back about £2,000 which he was paid in Tax Credits from the previous couple of tax years because his earnings were more than the threshold for receiving tax credits;

It later turned out that somewhere along the line someone miss-applied the decimal point which made this earnings far more than they actually were

However in their haste, they passed this fictitious 'debt' to a collection agency.

They have now been in correspondence for around 6 months to get this resolved but it is dragging on and progress is slow; when he logs into his Tax Credits account it still says he needs to pay back money.

So the question is, will this have a detrimental affect on his application to the Settlement Scheme? Or should he wait maybe a few more months so the issue is resolved before he makes the application?

Thank you in advance for any advice offered.

[Zerubbabel]

Hello

In the Suitability Requirements document:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... e-v2.0.pdf

There is nothing regarding issues with HMRC. Also, the Nantional Insurance Number is to check if the person lives in the UK (= contributing) not if the person is paying the right amount.

However, if he feels the issue is going to be sorted shortly, why not waiting until he can apply with peace of mind.