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How did we miss this gem in last Sunday Times' business section?
When analysing the types of people who are avoiding tax, HMRC found that it was far from being the preserve of the wealthy. It concluded that a rising number of middle-income workers, including NHS Nurses recruited during the pandemic, are taking part in tax avoidance schemes and owe the taxman nealy £2bn.
HMRC said that 30,000 workers are using avoidance schemes compared with 22,000 seven yeara ago.
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Hidden behind paywall. Confused about how you can owe the tax man money for avoiding tax, wouldn't that be tax evasion if it was still owed?
Yeah can’t read it and I’ve had to delete you link to the copyright infringement of the article you posted.
I'm pretty sure it's not just teachers and nurses (i imagine those subcontracted in). There will be all those oil and gas workers, the railway track workers who work through agencies, sole traders etc etc etc.
I’ve had to delete you link to the copyright infringement of the article you posted.
May as well delete the thread then...
Here is a link to the actual report
As a sole trader - obviously - all my billing is scrutinised by my accountant and they deal with the tax return
I can see how a 'more employed' (but still doing their own tax) person would use these loopholes though, Jamie
If you read the report on flannol's link its quite clear this isn't about people working the system to their advantage (lets face it that is current government policy) this is about business going out of their way to sell avoidance schemes to people.
othering.
why is the headline not:
This leaves about 20 to 30 promoters who are behind most of the tax avoidance schemes that are marketed to the UK public. These are the people who design, manage and organise avoidance schemes.
Tax avoidance is so 2015 - What I want to know is how do I get the government to give me squillions of the finest tax payers' pounds for a contract I have no intention of delivering despite having gone to the wrong school?
this is about business going out of their way to sell avoidance schemes to people.
Well, it is an article from the Times.... wonder why the specifically highlighted that NHS nurses are using these services? They wouldn't have an agenda to push would they?
Tax avoidance is perfectly legal and is only there due to the loopholes in the regulations set out via HMRC.
Why would you pay more than you’re required to do?
Tax evasion is another matter...
I am intrigued at who wouldn't legally avoid tax if they could?
isnt that the point. these companies are selling it as tax avoidance, when its actually tax evasion.
cycle to work scheme is tax avoidance.
Tax avoidance is perfectly legal and is only there due to the loopholes in the regulations set out via HMRC.
the loopholes are set by government legislation y by HMRC. They have to administer the tax legislation. Closing tax loopholes requires government action so won’t be happening any time soon
cycle to work scheme is tax avoidance.
No it ****ing isn't. It is a tax deductible benefit to encourage a healthy activity, abusing the scheme to buy a bike with the intention of not using it for the purpose agreed is tax avoidance. And even that would be a tiny percentage of the tax abuse.
This mis selling of tax avoidance is just making pathetic excuses for the parasites who drive truck loads of money out of the tax system and deprive the nation.
Marketed tax avoidance schemes are contrived schemes that are sold to one or more individuals and employers for a fee, with the aim of reducing their tax liabilities. Where this report refers to avoidance schemes, we mean “marketed” tax avoidance schemes.
So an accountant, then, or a financial advisor reccomending and ISA or a better pension scheme? lol
article from the Times…. wonder why the specifically highlighted that NHS nurses are using these services? They wouldn’t have an agenda to push would they?
This.. an employed nurse/ what avoidance options does someone who is PAYE have? claimimg tax relief on cleaning thier own uniforms?
I am intrigued at who wouldn’t legally avoid tax if they could?
Me
NHS nurses cannot avoid tax. Its bollox
I shouldn't be suprised that the times are conflating some thing and ignoring others to make their point which presumably is that "everyone is at it so why not lower tax to stop it happening"
owe the taxman nealy £2bn.
No. only £600m attributable to individual actions. around £1bn was avoided corporation tax.
HMRC estimates that around £1.7 billion was lost to tax avoidance<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">. Around https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/measuring-tax-gaps half of this gap (£0.9 billion) is attributed to Corporation Tax. The £0.6 billion element relating to avoidance schemes marketed to individuals is made up of unpaid Income Tax, National Insurance contributions and Capital Gains Tax, although it is likely to also include a small amount of Corporation Tax. Other direct taxes and VAT account for the smallest share of avoidance (each at £0.1 billion</span>
including NHS Nurses recruited during the pandemic,
This is a particularly vicious touch by the times. Yes, schemes were marketed to returning NHS workers who were concerned about the impact on on their pensions and in effect "paying" to work if they returned to help deal with the pandemic.
Promoters are hugely opportunistic. Over the last year we have, for example, seen them target NHS workers who returned to the frontline to battle COVID-19.
Tax avoidance is perfectly legal and is only there due to the loopholes in the regulations set out via HMRC
Its not. if you are entering into contrived transactions to avoid tax that would otherwise be due e.g. paying your salary into an offshore company and then loaning it back to yourself then although its within the "letter of the law" it is not what parliment intended and HMRC have wide ranging powers to close the schemes down and reclaim the tax.
Tax avoidance: general anti-abuse rule guidance - latest version - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
This tax avoidance industry is nasty - its like no win no fee and PPI reclaiming wrapped up in one. And in the end people end up paying huge amounts in fees and are still on the hook to HMRC for the correct amount of tax.
deleted. I really can't be bothered to get tables to work
cycle to work scheme is tax avoidance.
By that token so is earning less than £12,500 a year.
So the real point of the story is to make you link tax avoidance and evasion to NHS staff and make them into baddies, and to distract from big business, right?
So the real point of the story is to make you link tax avoidance and evasion to NHS staff and make them into baddies, and to distract from big business, right?
Give that man a prize.
Its not. if you are entering into contrived transactions to avoid tax that would otherwise be due e.g. paying your salary into an offshore company and then loaning it back to yourself then although its within the “letter of the law” it is not what parliment intended and HMRC have wide ranging powers to close the schemes down and reclaim the tax
Those schemes are right on the edge of Tax Avoidance/Evasion, which comes back to my point about HMRC tightening up the rules (see IR35)
I doubt the NHS would enter into contracts like that.
So the real point of the story is to make you link tax avoidance and evasion to NHS staff and make them into baddies, and to distract from big business, right?
Yes the gullible are all round us it seems