SAM101290 - Records: maintain taxpayer record: nominated partner
Definition of ‘Nominated Partner’
‘Nominated partner’ is a departmental term used for the person who is acting for the partnership in relation to a return, claim or other matter. The partner must have been included as a partner in the partnership return for the year in question.
Unless, exceptionally, the partnership return is issued to a named partner, the members of a partnership are required under S12AA(2) TMA 1970 to nominate one of their number to complete and file the partnership return including the partnership statement. This partner is referred to as the ‘nominated partner’. The term representative partner may also be used to describe the nominated partner.
When a partnership record is set up (see NIPG650060), although a signature is not legally required on the SA400 (Partnership Registration form), the boxes which request details of the nominated partner, such as name and address, must be completed. However, if the agent has completed the form SA400 and sent in a form 64-8 giving the nominated partners information, the record should be updated as below.
When you receive a nomination from the partnership, or a completed form SA670 (Confirmation of nominated partner) you should
- Make a Free Format note on the Signals page on the Partnership record to say
‘DD/MM/YY - Nomination or SA670 received. Nominated partner is [enter partners name]
- File the nomination away
When the partnership return is filed, only the nominated partner should sign the return. If more than one person has signed the return but one of those is clearly the nominated partner, the return can be accepted. If the return has not been signed by that person, you should check the partnership record to see if the nominated partner has changed during the year. If not, the return should be sent back as unsatisfactory. For further information, see subject ‘Unsatisfactory partnership returns’ at SAM122160.
Changes to the Nominated Partner
If the nominated partner shown on the record becomes unavailable, the members of the partnership may choose a successor and must notify the change to HMRC. In the absence of such notification HMRC can make a nomination. In such cases you should write to the Partnership, or the agent for the partnership, along the following lines
‘Our records do not show who the nominated partner for this partnership is, therefore we are nominating [enter name] as the nominated partner under Section 12AA(11)(b) TMA1970.’
If [enter name] is not to be the nominated partner, the partnership can nominate one of the existing partners and inform us in writing. I enclose form SA670 for this purpose’.
You should then make a Free Format note of the partner we have nominated and the date, and also make an SA Note to show your actions.
Where a nominated partner has died, the partnership will usually nominate another partner but in the absence of any other information you should issue form SA670 to one of the partners and update the record when received back.
Nominated Partners duties
The nominated partner or his / her successor is responsible for
- Filing the partnership return
- Dealing with all matters arising from an enquiry into the partnership return
And
- Keeping the other partners informed of the progress of the enquiry
In addition any appeal rights relating to the partnership are conferred only on the nominated partner so there may be situations where you receive appeals for several years from different partners because it was a different nominated partner who submitted that particular years return. It is therefore important that the appropriate nominated partner is identified before any appeal is dealt with. See subject ‘Appeals: who can make an appeal’ (SAM10010). The SEES form SA670 can be issued for this purpose.