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HMRC collects more tax than ever

Posted on 08 Dec 2013, by InTAX Ltd

HMRC collects more tax than ever

HM Revenue and Customs Collects More Tax Than Ever.

HMRC has announced that it has beaten its own target for collecting tax through tax investigations during 2012–13.

In 2012-13 HMRC collected over £20.7 billion as a result of its attack on tax evasion and tax avoidance. Experience has shown that HMRC’s approach to tax avoidance has toughened considerably over recent times, particularly as the media hypes the morality (or lack of) of entities attempting to minimise their liabilities. Of course, everyone is entitled to minimise their liability to tax provided the planning is within the law, and in HMRC’s view, within the spirit of the law. Nobody wants to pay more tax than they need to.

Over the last six years HMRC’s take from tax investigations has doubled, and there is no sign of the trend being reversed. The Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility (LDF) is of course helping HMRC as people strive to get their tax affairs in order to take advantage of favourable benefits of early disclosure, and the recent signing of cross-border agreements with Bermuda, Monserrat and the Cayman Islands will undoubtedly continue the flow of new revenue to HMRC.

There is a growing sense that HMRC is becoming increasingly more aggressive and taking on smaller businesses that do not necessarily possess the resources required to pursue legitimate disputes as far as the appeal tribunals. This is a scenario within which HMRC sometimes seeks to impose its own particular view of legislation onto clients. This is why it is important to obtain specialist advice, ideally at the start of any investigation or as soon as it becomes obvious that the issues are not straightforward as the taxpayer would like them to be . Call us on 020 3675 8122, or email Jacqui.fleming@intaxllp.com