RM2016 | Registering claims: What to do if the file is missing

From HM Revenue & Customs · Repayment Claims Manual

If the file is missing when you have registered a claim you must look for it carefully. Use the following instructions to help you search. Make a note of where you have looked.

Check

all offices and storerooms
that it is not with Head Office or another District on loan
whether the claim form shows previous taxable income. If it does, telephone the appropriate PAYE or D District/Section and ask whether they have the file
that it has not been misfiled under a transposed or incorrect reference
a maiden name or forename
the first part of a hyphenated name
another file for the same person
that it has not been misfiled with another file for which a payable order was issued on the same date as the previous payable order for this claimant.

You will be able to find this by

using CL to see when the last payable order for this claimant was issued

and

checking the Release List for that date.

If you do not succeed in finding the file you should make a new one. This is called reconstituting the file.