HMRC have published their report on the “Use of marketed tax avoidance schemes in the UK (2020 to 2021)”.
According to the report:
“In 2020 to 2021, the estimated amount of tax the UK lost to marketed tax avoidance was around £0.4 billion. The tax avoidance market continues to be dominated by disguised remuneration (DR) schemes, targeting contractors and agency workers. Our most recent findings are that these schemes are largely operated or facilitated by non-compliant umbrella companies (meaning they do not fully comply with their obligation to deduct taxes under PAYE on payments made to their workers).”
The HMRC approach to those caught up in disguised remuneration schemes is highly controversial, and the report comments that “through our early intervention work we continue to use our data to identify people who might have entered tax avoidance schemes, alert them to the risks and help them leave as quickly as possible”.
Related content from Claritax Books
This detailed, technical book on Disguised Remuneration and the Loan Charge, by tax barrister David Pett, is aimed squarely at professional advisers. The work explains the practical application of a body of tax legislation that was first enacted in 2011, and that has been amended or re-enacted in most subsequent years.
