Josoemag Services Limited v The Commissioners for HMRC

Facts

Josoemag Services Limited claimed support payments for employees under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. HMRC challenged the amounts claimed and issued income tax assessments for sums said to have been overpaid. The company appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber), which dismissed the appeal in a decision issued on 15 August 2024. The FTT resolved a number of technical disputes about the calculation of the claims, none of which was in issue before the Upper Tribunal. It also stated that it had no jurisdiction to consider a breach of legitimate expectation. The company's director, Mr Joshua, said that in a telephone call in December 2020 an HMRC officer, Officer Bulch, told him that his calculations had been accepted, that no compliance issues had been found and that no further developments should be anticipated. Permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal was granted on one ground only: that the FTT erred in holding that it lacked jurisdiction to determine a claim of legitimate expectation that the assessments would not be issued. HMRC objected that the point was new, having not been run before the FTT, and that it would be procedurally unfair to allow it on appeal. The Upper Tribunal heard the appeal on 3 July 2026 and did not determine the underlying merits of any legitimate expectation claim.