HELP!!!! Bank Account Frozen / No-ops

TheBanker

grumbler wrote: »

I think for a real ML a frozen account is the best possible 'tip' that any further alleged tips can't outdo.

i agree with this point. A real criminal would know that the authorities were onto him if he found his account frozen, and would (if he had any sense) do a runner straight away.

But the legislation is as it is. So long as the bank doesn't say the account is frozen because money laundering is suspected, they're not guilty of tipping off.

benog1985

We'll see what happens.

I can't see it being PayPal transactions because these were predominantly 2012 and I haven't yet filed my tax return for this year and these figures will obviously be shown on there.

Only thing I can think is that they're not happy that I don't have a separate business account but we'll see, hopefully tomorrow will bring more news.

Will keep you posted.

p00hsticks

grumbler wrote: »

I know some other more general principles, like 'innocent until proven guilty' - hence, supposed not to suffer meanwhile.

The 'innocent until proven guilty' principle doesn't stop people being arrested and held on remand until trial though, does it ?

FireWyrm

p00hsticks wrote: »

The 'innocent until proven guilty' principle doesn't stop people being arrested and held on remand until trial though, does it ?

No, but generally, you get to be informed of the charges before hand, or at least the nature of the investigation, who accuses you and what you are supposed to have done...

pmduk

benog1985 wrote: »

The T&C's say that they can freeze an account if they suspect fraudulent or criminal activity which there isn't any.

You really aren't in a position to state what they do or don't suspect. If they do suspect some of the incoming payments may not be entirely above board there is little they can legally say.

FireWyrm

Any update today?

LurkerTurnedPoster

OPPost: "I haven't done anything out of the ordinary with my account at all, it is my current account where my wages go in to from work and I use eBay quite a lot so have money going in from PayPal etc but I have done this for quite a while now (2-3 years) so nothing different."

Given the reasons for a bank account being frozen, and information already supplied I am going to make a guess.

Is the eBay activity such as to give an indication that you could be trading, and therefore subject to tax on earnings?

What were you selling on eBay?
How much money did you bank in the past 12 months through Paypal, and can you access your paypal account?

HMRC have recently got permission to access eBay records for those selling as a trader. The offered a task-force amnesty last year for eBay sellers to come forward and get straight with their tax liability for reduced penalties and interest. They were clear that anyone selling online that did not come forward and disclose earnings could be investigated and prosecuted under criminal investigation of fraud, although many would be persued for unpaid taxes assessed as due under the civil proceedures.

Does this sound like it could be why your accounts are frozen?
If you have not done anything to indicate laundering elsewhere and there is only the eBay income, it points to this being a possible reason.

lovinituk

ERICS_MUM wrote: »

2. on the instructions of HMRC re suspected tax or VAT fraud (e.g. your Paypal stuff)

Good call! This seems to fit best with the description the OP has given of their activities. Best get your paper work in order OP if you have a HMRC investigation looming!

benog1985

LurkerTurnedPoster wrote: »

OPPost: "I haven't done anything out of the ordinary with my account at all, it is my current account where my wages go in to from work and I use eBay quite a lot so have money going in from PayPal etc but I have done this for quite a while now (2-3 years) so nothing different."

Given the reasons for a bank account being frozen, and information already supplied I am going to make a guess.

Is the eBay activity such as to give an indication that you could be trading, and therefore subject to tax on earnings?

What were you selling on eBay?
How much money did you bank in the past 12 months through Paypal, and can you access your paypal account?

HMRC have recently got permission to access eBay records for those selling as a trader. The offered a task-force amnesty last year for eBay sellers to come forward and get straight with their tax liability for reduced penalties and interest. They were clear that anyone selling online that did not come forward and disclose earnings could be investigated and prosecuted under criminal investigation of fraud, although many would be persued for unpaid taxes assessed as due under the civil proceedures.

Does this sound like it could be why your accounts are frozen?
If you have not done anything to indicate laundering elsewhere and there is only the eBay income, it points to this being a possible reason.

Hi,

Thanks for your post. I have no updates from today and have received nothing from HMRC through the post to indicate it is due to this and I have full access to my PayPal & eBay accounts. I wasn't aware of an amnesty with eBay and to be honest, the main activity has been within the last tax year and therefore have yet to complete my tax return so unsure if it would be down to this or not.

I'll have to keep waiting I suppose and see what comes of it.

Thanks again for your post though.

lovinituk

benog1985 wrote: »

I wasn't aware of an amnesty with eBay and to be honest, the main activity has been within the last tax year and therefore have yet to complete my tax return so unsure if it would be down to this or not.

The main activity? What about the rest? Despite my questions you don't have to justify or explain anything here. Only you (and HMRC!) know if you have not declared your full earnings and that's entirely between you and them if its the case. If its not the case then you don't need to worry about it do you!