How long does it take to get a tax rebate?

A question about : How long does it take to get a tax rebate?

I started a new job in January, and from the start of my employment through to the end of the tax year I was put on an emergency tax code (the Inland Revenue's explanation for this is that they didn't have 'enough information', my explanation for this, having P45s covering my every move since August 2005, is that they're lazy).

Anyhow, I know full well I've been overtaxed so I wrote to my local tax office about 6 weeks ago, as advised by Inland Revenue when I called them a couple of months ago, and haven't even had an acknowledgement that they received my letter... and I have no idea how to follow it up, as the number for my local office actually takes me through to a national number who have no idea if my local office has received my letter or not. Considering I gave them every possible method of contacting me, they could have at least let me know they'd received my letter. Is it normal for it to take this long? Or should I consider it lost en route and send all the information through again? Maybe I sound like I'm being impatient but 6 weeks seems quite a long time; to be fair I only know one person who's tried to get a tax rebate this way but he received his cheque about 10 days after sending his letter!

Best answers:

• I think thats a fairly long time.
  Write again, but make sure you state that its a second attempt.
  Were you woirking between April 06 & Dec/Jan 07 somewhere else?
  Was your tax code 5**L, but always on a week/month one basis?
• I got my tax back within a month. I can't remember what the form was called but you should be able to find it online, or go to the Tax office. Fill it in and hand it in with your p45, or send it yourself if they give u an envelope.
• You need to send in a P50 form that you can download from the inland revenue website, and send in your P45s and P60 etc with it. If I am not mistaken it is the first page of the P45 that you need to send in.
  I sent my in in January by recorded signed for etc... Never got an acknoledgement from them and called them back 6 weeks later, they told me they didn't even know if they had got it (!!!!?????!!!!!!!!) and was probably there somewhere only they were swamped with work and had only started opening the mail they had received at the end of December 2006! (I called them middle of March). Called back again in April, apparently I had sent it to wrong address (sent it to address in my last revenue thingy) so they had to send it to correct department, so how to allow time for correct department to receive it and review it. Called back at the end of May as still no news... Got a "Oh yes, sorry this should have been dealt with ages ago, I don't know what happened...you will get cheque in the post shortly...first got a letter about after a week and 3 weeks later finally a cheque.
  Sincerly hope you have better luck!
• I would start phoning.
  I type all letters like that & save a copy on my PC, always a good idea.
• It normally takes 4 to 6 weeks for a rebate to be issued depending on how much post they have on hand. They never acknowledge receipt of letters basically because of the volume of post they receive and the cost to the taxpayer if they did do that. I would send letters to them recorded delivery.
  You will only be asked to complete a P91 or P92 employment history form if there are any gaps in your record which HMRC can't account for ie previous employer, you or benefits agency didn't tell them your circumstances had changed.
  Unfortunately HMRC have decided, supposedly to improve customer service, that individual staff will no longer have their own allocation of employers, and hence their employees, to deal with. Anyone can deal with any post and the taxpayer can no longer ring through to the person dealing with their case and instead get through (if they are lucky) to a telephone unit within their tax office.
  BTW HMRC used to have to respond to post within 15 working days. That is now increasingly difficult to achieve with staff having been moved to telephone units or been told they are "Pre-surplus or Surplus" and either moved to TCO or let go.
• I have been waiting 3 months!! Only just got an acknowledgement of my first letter last week, asking for my P60. Phoned them and they say they haven't even got to opening the letter that contains my P60, sent 2 months ago
  Leicestershire tax office by the way.
• I have a tax issue that I don't really know where I stand. I'm working two jobs for a couple of weeks over the summer but one is paid through an agency and paid weekly. I've started another job during the day but won't be paid for the first timet until the end of this month. I'm due to receive my P45 from work I did in April (I'm a horrible student hence long working gaps) which I was going to give to my main employer but will I be deemed as having two jobs and therefore be taxed at 22% (on my second job)? I'm on emergency tax through the agency so losing quite a lot of money through tax and I'm aiming to earn just under the tax threshold for the year.
  Should I ask for the P45 from the agency (but I may do a couple of weeks work later in my university holidays for them?) that I've done this other work for or just give them the one from April, can I also give them a P38 (student form - I know I couldn't with two jobs but technically I won't be employed by the agency at the end of the month?)? Not that I'm trying to de-fraud the Government or anything, I just don't want to have to wait probably to next April to claim the tax back as the tax money would be very useful and could be earning interest in my savings accounts...
  Sorry if that's a bit of a vague ramble.
• hi wonder if anyone can help me for the past 5 years i have been off and on work and i definetly know that i am due for a tax refund refun. The only problem is that i dont have a p45 or p60 because my ex wife have destroyed them all due to our divorce. I do have all employer details and date that i have been working so can i still claim tax back? i have just told one of them tax refund company that i dont want them to deal with my case anymore, they were really not nice when i said that but what the hell lol. i have now notified that i dont want silly company dealing with my case but you think HMRC can deal with my case without p45 and p60? please can anyone help me
• couldn't the tax office do the statement of earning for me from my ex employer? if they can't what if my previous employer wont give me one? is it by law that they have to?
• What if the employer refuse to give me statement of earnings?
• What if the employer refuse to give me statement of earnings? sorry need to ask again please can anyone answer this
• I am experiencing the same difficulties getting my overpaid taxes back. I am due Ј780 (only worked part of the year), boyfriend is due Ј1300 (was on emergency tax and also worked only for part of the year).
  My boyfriend and I mailed our P60s and all of our stuff to the Northeast Metropolitan Area tax office on the 9th of May.
  I called on 25 May and they told me that they were only dealing with post received on the 12 of March.
  It's the end of July now....still waiting....no conf. letter.....no cheque in the post. Have been calling every day now for the past 3 weeks and have not been able to get through even once. There is a recorded message saying that they "are dealing with high call volume".
  All I can say is, trying to get your taxes back is a BLOODY FREAKING NIGHTMARE.
  If you are struggling to make ends meet like me and my boyfriend it is honestly an incredible hardship to have to wait this long. We want to move out of our dump neighbourhood in North London and can't do a thing until we get the money back. Complete debacle. I hate the Inland Revenue.
  I love how they are so quick to steal your money but have no qualms about taking FOREVER to pay it back. Wish they paid interest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!