Special Cases and Exclusions

Note: For up to date information about specials and exclusions, search on Sage Knowledgebase for Specials and Exclusions.

As part of filing online, your clients' returns are validated by HMRC servers. There are some instances where the HMRC server will incorrectly report a data validation error against a submitted return.

To limit the number of returns that get falsely rejected, HMRC prepare a list of Special Cases and Exclusions and make this list available to software developers like Sage. We then take this information and incorporate a series of checks in the software. Before you can file online using Sage Taxation, your clients' returns must pass our software's own validations. These validations will flag whether your client's return falls into the Special Case or Exclusions category.

  • Special Cases - In most cases there will be a way to workaround the validation problem and successfully file online. This topic will help you find these workarounds.
  • Exclusions - There are situations where filing online is not possible. If your client's return falls into the Exclusions category, it will need to be filed on paper.