Property transactions rose almost a third in August September 21, 2021 Property transactions in August rose almost one third on the previous month, according to official estimates. The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of residential transactions in August was 98,300, 32 per cent higher than July, HMRC data published on Tuesday revealed. The number of transactions was also 20.8 per cent higher than August 2020. It comes [...]
Legal Q&A: How referees’ pay could be hit by a tax dispute with HMRC and why this could have wide-reaching effects on the gig economy September 21, 2021 Lawyer Kevin Barrow explores the implications of an ongoing case between referees and HMRC. What’s this case about? It’s about whether PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) needs to deduct income tax and National Insurance Contributions (NICs) from payments it makes to referees whom it has engaged on a self-employed “gig worker” basis to officiate at [...]
Accounting body urges government to scrap tax reform plans September 1, 2021 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has today called for the government to drop tax reform plans which, the accounting body says, “will likely to create as many problems as it might solve”. The ICAEW today published a response to the UK government’s consultation on basis period reform. It reiterated the [...]
Civil investigations by HMRC fell during lockdown August 28, 2021 HMRC civil investigations into suspected tax evasion have fallen during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to FOI data obtained by national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young. The organisation said HMRC opened 278 civil investigations into suspected tax evasion during the first ten months of the pandemic, between 1 April 2020 to 31 January [...]
Mecca Bingo owner Rank Group’s shares rise after win in VAT battle with HMRC August 25, 2021 Shares in Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casino owner Rank Group jumped today on the news it’s likely to secure an £80m tax rebate from HMRC. The long-running tax spat looks likely to conclude with the gambling firm nabbing a rebate of up to £80m from a VAT claim after HMRC chaose not to appeal against an [...]
Tax and accounting bodies call for government to delay reporting reforms August 23, 2021 UK tax and accounting bodies have urged the government to delay reforms to the tax system which would affect how self-employed people and businesses report their profits. In a letter sent to Treasury financial secretary Jesse Norman, representatives from five tax and accounting bodies, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales and [...]
Exclusive: Unpaid stamp duty clawed back by the tax man soars to five-year high August 11, 2021 Tax clawed back from probes into suspected unpaid stamp duty reached a five-year high this year, reveal exclusive figures obtained by City A.M. The tax man recouped an average of £113,400 from each investigation it launched into unpaid stamp duty in 2020/21, shows data secured through a Freedom of Information request submitted to HMRC. The data [...]
Exclusive: HMRC’s elite Offshore unit securing prison time for tax evaders trebled last year July 29, 2021 HMRC’s elite Offshore, Corporate and Wealthy (OCW) Unit secured convictions totalling 67 years of prison time for tax evaders last year, nearly trebling the total of just 23 years secured a year earlier. The increase in prison sentences is a sign that HMRC’s strategy of using targeted criminal investigations, rather than just civil penalties, as a [...]
Exclusive: Sharp drop in fines against finance directors as HMRC has ‘bigger fish to fry’ July 20, 2021 The number of penalties issued personally to finance directors at large businesses by HMRC has dropped from 148 to just 20 in a year, according to new data, shared with City A.M. today. Law firm Pinsent Masons said that much of the fall in the number of fines against finance directors is due to HMRC [...]
Benefit fraud and overpayments hit record £8.3bn during pandemic July 15, 2021 Fraud and error overpayments in the benefits system were pushed to record levels last year, largely because of bogus Universal Credit claims during the coronavirus pandemic. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) estimates it overpaid £8.3bn (7.5 per cent) out of £111.4bn of benefits other than the state pension in 2020-21, an increase of [...]