Do I have to attend an HMRC meeting in person?

No. In an ordinary civil compliance check, HMRC has no statutory power to force you to attend a meeting. Schedule 36 Finance Act 2008 gives HMRC power to require documents and information, but it doesn't give a power to compel physical attendance at an interview in the way, for example, a criminal interview under caution would.

HMRC's opening letters often propose a meeting as the natural next step, and many advisers do agree to one because it can speed things up. But it remains a request rather than a demand, and declining it, at least in a standard civil check, carries no direct penalty.

A meeting lets HMRC ask follow-up questions in real time, gauge how confident you are about your answers, and cover several points quickly rather than exchanging letters over weeks. From HMRC's perspective, it's often the most efficient way to test whether your explanations hold together.

That efficiency cuts both ways: a meeting also gives you the chance to explain context that might not come across well in writing, and to gauge directly what HMRC is actually concerned about, which can shorten the overall check.

Meetings are unscripted, and it's easy to say something imprecise or speculative under gentle questioning that later needs correcting, which can look worse than getting it right the first time in writing. Answers given informally can still be relied on by HMRC in reaching its conclusions.

For this reason, many accountants recommend dealing with substantive matters in writing wherever possible, reserving meetings, if held at all, for narrow, well-prepared purposes rather than open-ended discussion.

HMRC will simply continue the check by correspondence, asking its questions by letter and expecting written answers within a reasonable period instead. This doesn't stop the check or reduce HMRC's ability to gather information; it just changes the format.

If HMRC feels correspondence alone is producing unsatisfactory or inconsistent answers, it may press again for a meeting, but the decision to attend remains yours, and it's reasonable to explain that you're content to continue in writing.

The voluntary position applies to ordinary civil compliance checks and enquiries. It does not apply in the same way to a Code of Practice 9 investigation into suspected fraud, where meetings are a core part of the contractual disclosure process, or to a formal interview under caution in a criminal investigation, where different legal rules and protections apply.

If you're unsure which type of process you're in, that's worth establishing first, since it changes both your rights and the risks of attending or declining a meeting.