HMRC has joined forces with Advertising Standards to act against misleading marketing by promoters of tax avoidance schemes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The joint enforcement notice aims to disrupt the activity of promoters and protect people from being presented with misleading adverts which may tempt them into tax avoidance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It requires promoters to be clear about the potential consequences of tax avoidance in any online advertisements. Immediate sanctions include having their paid advertising removed from search engines and follow-up compliance action, which can include referral to Trading Standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the same time HMRC has launched its \u2018Tax avoidance: don\u2019t get caught out\u2019 awareness campaign, warning and educating contractors about how to identify if they are being offered a tax avoidance scheme, and the pitfalls of using these schemes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesse Norman MP, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Government has made clear its determination to clamp down on the promoters of tax avoidance schemes.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cToday HMRC and the ASA are taking an important further step in this direction by action against misleading advertisements by promoters.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAs always, we would encourage people to pay close attention to HMRC\u2019s warnings not to enter tax avoidance schemes. If it looks too good to be true, it almost certainly is.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Jim Harra, Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary of HMRC, said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re doing our part to close down these schemes and make it difficult for promoters, but we need the public to play their part too.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou really don\u2019t need to be a tax expert to spot an avoidance scheme \u2013 anything that sounds too good to be true almost certainly is, and anything which claims you can take home, say, 90% of your pay, or asks you to sign up to loans from an offshore trust just so you can be paid, is something to steer clear of.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s why we\u2019re starting a big push to encourage taxpayers to steer clear of tax avoidance schemes. This is part of HMRC\u2019s wider work to make it much harder for promoters to operate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Miles Lockwood, Director of Complaints and Investigations, ASA, said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis notice serves as a clear warning to promoters of tax avoidance schemes \u2013 get your houses in order and ensure your ads comply with the law and our advertising rules or face enforcement action.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere can be a real consumer detriment for those who unwittingly follow bogus tax avoidance advice \u2013 you could find yourself facing a significant tax bill. Working with bodies such as the HMRC is helping us to better protect consumers from misleading and unfair advertising that can leave them out of pocket.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u2018Tax avoidance: don\u2019t get caught out\u2019 campaign is asking the public to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n STOP \u2013 don\u2019t sign anything that you are uncomfortable with or don\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n CHALLENGE \u2013 check for warning signs. If you\u2019re unsure, seek independent professional advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n PROTECT \u2013 if you think you have been offered a tax avoidance scheme, report it to HMRC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At Liquid Friday we genuinely welcome this action by HMRC and ASA. Tax avoidance scheme promoters and rogue umbrella companies are the nemesis of legitimate firms and blight the whole industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The key thing for contractors to remember is that all compliant umbrella companies must operate by the same rules – there are no loopholes and no magic formulas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can tell if an umbrella company is on the level by asking the following questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Are they UK owned and registered with no registered with no off-shore affiliations?<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Are they VAT-registered?<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Do they have over-arching employment contracts?<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Do they deduct full PAYE tax and NIC?<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Do they pay at least National Minimum Wage and only reimburse expenses above this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Do they pay statutory payments such as SSP?<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s your wages and tax that they are handling, so don\u2019t be afraid to dig a little – good companies have nothing to hide and will be happy to answer your questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Better still, stick with trusted industry names and companies that are accredited by the Freelancer & Contractor Services Association (FCSA).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" HMRC has joined forces with Advertising Standards to act against misleading marketing by promoters of tax avoidance schemes. The joint enforcement notice aims to disrupt the activity of promoters and protect people from being presented with misleading adverts which may tempt them into tax avoidance. It requires promoters to be clear about the potential consequences […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2972,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,27,43],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe \u201cgood umbrella\u201d checklist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n