Tax Evasion Dilemma

desperatedan1989

Hi there,
I have quite a serious problem and I need some assistance.
I'm from Ireland and I since I moved to the UK over 1 year ago, I haven't been paying tax. I didn't pay tax in Ireland for the previous 2 years either.
The reasons for this are two-fold. I make my own money and things were going quite badly for me personally - I was basically homeless, living in hotels and struggling with alcoholism. Even though I was making money each month, it was eaten up time and time again.
Lately though, things have improved and I'm now in a position to pay tax. I don't have a tax number or anything. My Irish bank have gotten in touch and told me that I need to provide evidence of tax status in the UK and I have 30 days from today to do so.
My fear is that I'll be investigated, charged for tax evasion and jailed. As you can see, I haven't been living a life of luxury but I do need - and want - to pay my tax.
Can anyone please advise what I should do?
Thank you.
Dan

Broadyx

I imagine you need to register to complete a self assessment assuming you are still self-employed?

https://www.gov.uk/tax-come-to-uk

ultimately theres not a lot you can do if you have been intentionally avoiding paying tax... maybe speak to an accountant to get some help - maybe give TaxAid a call and see if they can help you, but not sure how much they can help if you are an Irish national. Worth a call though and explain your situation, see what they suggest.

desperatedan1989

Is it possible I can pay for the missing tax over the past year since I moved to the UK and that's it?

Because I know there'll be fees / penalties...so would that be sufficient for me to undo the damage?

TheCyclingProgrammer

An unprompted disclosure followed by submission of tax returns for the missing periods and full repayment of unpaid tax + interest should mitigate/reduce any penalties (but it won't eliminate them completely). HMRC do prefer people who own up and pay up. You may be able to arrange a payment plan.

anselld

If you can submit a return by end Jan then everything after April 2017 is on time anyway as far as submission goes. Payment is another matter but you can request a payment plan.

When did you start self employment in UK?

desperatedan1989

I started in September 2017.

I don't know what to do though. I do my self-employed work here (as it's online based) but all of my income goes into my Irish bank account.

Does that mean I owe tax to the Irish state, the UK state or both?

desperatedan1989

Also, can someone give me direction on how long it takes to get a tax ID number?

Heedtheadvice

I cannot comment on the situation in Irsland, there will likely be someone on here who can, but do follow Broadyx advice, read the HMRC links for starters and that in the referenced page about residency.
It does sound like you might need to pay some tax in the uk from when you started work here and you are running late to do an assessment and pay (both by end Jan.) so get going straight away. You might also have a need to have been paying National Insurance.


If Taxaid is not any help then professional help from an accountant could well be a good move, or even both!!


Yours is probably not an unusual situation for 'immigrants' from other parts of the EU. There are currently well established agreements within the EU to prevent double taxation. Your bank might be seeking evidence that it does not need to report your income to the Republic's revenue service?

antrobus

desperatedan1989 wrote: »

....
My fear is that I'll be investigated, charged for tax evasion and jailed.

That is not going to happen.

desperatedan1989 wrote: »

....
As you can see, I haven't been living a life of luxury but I do need - and want - to pay my tax.
Can anyone please advise what I should do?

Start here
https://www.gov.uk/log-in-file-self-assessment-tax-return/register-if-youre-self-employed

Be assured, HMRC is quite used to people being a bit tardy with their registration.