$120 to cash late mum’s $12 cheque from IRD

Nothing in life is free, not even a $12 tax refund made out to your late mother.

Waikato man Arnold Koppens recently received a letter from Inland Revenue (IRD) along with a cheque for $12.94 made out to his mother, Hubertina Maria Koppens.

Hubertina died on April 18, 2010, aged 92.

Koppens contacted IRD to explain his mother had died eight years ago and asked for the cheque to be written out to him. Simple, right? Apparently not.

‘‘They were, like, oh no, we can’t do that,’’ Koppens said.

‘‘They then told me I would have to provide them with a sworn statement from one of my mum’s trustees, which is going to cost me $120. All this so I can cash a tax refund for $12.’’

Koppens said probate had already been carried out on his mother’s will, with IRD duly notified.

Adding to his frustration was the fact his mother’s tax refund dates to the 2000/01 financial year.

‘‘It’s taken IRD 17 years to process the refund, which is a hell of a long time. Now I’m wondering if we will have to go through this process if we get a 2002 refund for Mum or a 2003 refund or a 2004 refund.’’

In a statement, IRD senior media adviser Gay Cavill said as part of transformation work at Inland Revenue, staff were identifying past credits owed to people.

Some taxpayers may receive a letter directing them to the IRD website.

An intention of IRD’s business transformation project is to make it easier for taxpayers to get a tax refund.

The personal tax reforms are hoped to leave people about $100 million a year better off.

Cavill said Inland Revenue could not talk about Koppens’ specific circumstances.

However, when someone died, IRD required confirmation of the death before it could release any refunds to another person.

‘‘Without that confirmation, we cannot transfer the credit to another person’s account,’’ Cavill said.

‘‘Both these processes are designed to deliver the best result for our customers while also maintaining the integrity of the tax system.’’

In response, Koppens said the purpose of the sworn statement was to confirm his mother had died, a fact IRD should have already noted on its files.

‘‘Even if I do provide them with a sworn statement, there’s no certainty they’ll write the cheque out to me. Apparently, they have to send the cheque back to Wellington and it’s up to someone down there to figure out who to write the cheque out to.’’

Koppens was undecided about what to do with the cheque, given the cost and effort involved in cashing it.

It may end up permanently pinned to a wall at his house.

KELLY HODEL/ STUFF Arnold Koppens received a $12 tax refund addressed to his late mother, Hubertina Koppens. She died in April 2010.