Tax Evasion

MKUX3

i have received the letter as well saying that you must agree to a disclosure etc but i have never worked abroad or held a ofshore savings accounts, i have only held uk high st accounts which are always taxed anyhow so i think everyone is receiving these letters.

MKUX3

thanks for reply, but i have read over the letter from the accountant, and it has said that it has written it all of its clients, so this is not a personal letter from HMR and as i say i have just a few high street bank accounts which are always taxed and i receive the net

dealsearcher

I too received a letter. I used to work overseas and had an offshore bank account. When I returned to the UK I transferred my account balance to my UK bank. However I forgot about the interest due on the account at the time and therefore the account balance showed around £0.60p for some years and just £0.02p interest in that time.

I called the HMCR helpdesk but they would not give any advice except that I should notify an intention to disclose. This I have done but surely I should not owe anything on £0.02p interest? And why insist on disclosure for such tiny amounts which I had forgotten about?

It does seem absurd to me that they are chasing people with dormant accounts with negligible amounts.

peter999

HMRC -Letter sent out
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/offshorefunds/account-holders.pdf

Amnesty experiences so far. By Will Heard
http://www.accountingweb.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=168545&d=1025&h=1019&f=1026

Tax amnesty for overseas homeowners
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/tax/article1654070.ece

peter999

David170607

Just to summarise / clarify.

The 'amnesty' is not an amnesty as such, it is an opportunity for taxpayers to 'come clean' to HM Revenue & Customs about past tax under-declarations with a minimum of fuss and a low penalty. In some cases there will be no penalty at all, but in every case the tax, plus interest on the tax, will need to be paid (by 26 November).

HMR&C have sent letters to approximately 400,000 customers of banks whom they have been told have accounts offshore. If you have received such a letter from HMR&C then, unless you are absolutely sure your UK tax returns are correct, it would be wise to get urgent professional advice.

I would recommend getting advice from a QUALIFIED accountant (such as a chartered accountant or certified accountant) or a QUALIFIED tax advisor (such as a chartered tax adviser). Be aware that anyone can call himself simply an "accountant" or "tax adviser" without having passed any exams or having any relevant knowledge or experience.

If you prefer you can go to a solicitor instead.

In these circumstances a qualified accountant will not normally be required to report you to SOCA because the information you supply will be covered by "legal advice privilege".

If you have in the past under-declared income (for example from business takings) then you can now declare this under the 'amnesty' arrangements. The 'amnesty' is not limited to income connected to something offshore. It's not limited to income either - it covers VAT, Capital Gains Tax and lots of other taxes and duties too. Again get advice from a qualified accountant or a qualified tax adviser.

Because of this some accountants have sent letters to ALL of their clients telling them about the 'amnesty'. So receiving a letter from your accountant does NOT mean you are on the list that HMR&C have.

The deadline for initial notification to HMR&C under the 'amnesty' is 22 June - so you need to move fast!

Up to a week ago about 8,000 people are believed to have notified HMR&C that they wish to take advantage of the 'amnesty'.

If you are one of the 400,000 who got a letter from HMR&C and you don't do anything about it then there is a good chance that HMR&C will come after you. This will involve more letters from them with lots of questions about your finances, possibly a meeting with them, and finally an agreement for you to pay tax, interest and a higher penalty than you would have got under the 'amnesty'. This is a lot of stress you don't need!

David

dealsearcher

My understanding is that the recent european union ruling / agreement means that money placed 'offshore' anywhere in the european union can now be traced by the tax authorities. Previous tax 'havens' in locations such as Jersey now have to divulge their accounts to the Inland Revenue.

What about people who have money in locations outside of the european union who are UK Nationals and UK resident? Will the UK tax authorities demand their accounts be revealed by the foreign governments?

I am sure a lot of law abiding people are finding these letters very intimidating. It's great for accountants who will charge for their services - very often just to provide the Inland Revenue with a return showing they owe no tax.