COVID-19 and certifying residence

In March 2020, HMRC introduced a new version of Form RES1 for companies and partnerships to apply for a certificate of residence. These documents are often requested by a foreign tax authority where a business has foreign-source income from that country. RES1 is used where there is a double-tax treaty between the countries, and the tax rights belong to the UK, or a lower rate of withholding tax is applied.

As a result of COVID-19 most HMRC staff are working from home so changes have been made to several processes to ensure quality of service in issuing Certificates of Residence (COR). HMRC officers typically receive the vast majority of requests electronically, even where they are posted to HMRC, so most people who request CORs will not notice any disruption or delay.

However, some jurisdictions require either a ‘wet’ signature or even an Apostille, which is a document signed by the Legalisation Office of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office confirming that the UK public official signing the Certificate is who they purport to be. As this is not part of the usual COR process it may take up to 30 working days as officers will need to attend an HMRC office to process these. HMRC has contacted several of these jurisdictions, with a view to agreeing a number of interim measures.

Taxpayers should continue to apply for CORs and leave adequate time for a response. HMRC will work hard to issue CORs in whatever format is required.
If you would like assistance with applications for Certificates Of Residence please email Mark Baycroft or Nicola Goldsmith.

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