Dear Mr Kelly

Freedom of Information Request

Thank you for your request for information about amounts of money held by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Your request was received on 11 March 2010 and I am dealing with it under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

In your email you have asked for the total amount of monies held by HMRC for companies and individuals that are `in dispute' in respect of VAT repayment claims, over payments and “Inland Revenue Refunds” which I have taken to mean direct tax refunds.

Published statistics

HMRC do publish a large range of statistics about the taxes collected and you can access this on the Department's website (www.hmrc.gov.uk) by submitting a search for Annual Reports. Under this heading you can gain access to the department's Annual Reports, Autumn Performance Reports and the Annual Reports tables and statistics. If you do not have access to the Internet at home, you may be able to use facilities at your local public library, or you can request a paper copy by contacting me.

More detailed statistics

Given the period of time covered by your request and the large range of data that you request, HMRC would be unable to provide more detailed information without exceeding the level of reasonable costs for obtaining information. The appropriate limit is specified in regulations and for central government is set at £600. This represents the estimated cost of one person spending 3½ working days determining if the department holds the information.

This includes locating, retrieving and extracting the information. Under section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 the department is not obliged to comply with such a request.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

If you are not happy with this reply you may request a review by writing to HMRC FOI Team, Room 4/52, 100 Parliament Street London SWIA 2BQ. You must request a review within 2 months of the date of this letter. It would assist our review if you set out which aspects of the reply concern you and why you are dissatisfied.

If you are not content with the outcome of an internal review, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner will not usually consider a case unless you have exhausted the internal review procedure provided by HMRC. He can be contacted at The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Yours sincerely

Jane Kingdom

FOI/DPA Support Team

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