HMRC get £800m investment to boost tax investigations
Posted on in Business News
The government is planning to intensify its crackdown on tax avoidance by investing a further £800million in HMRC.
HM Revenue & Customs is expected to raise £7.2bn through more tax investigations thanks to the boost from government investment.
This figure will be achieved by tripling the number of criminal investigations the revenue can carry out annually by 2020.
According to the Treasury, the Revenue will net £9 for every £1 invested under its plan, which includes £300m from 2016 to tackle non-compliance by SMEs.
SME investigations have proven lucrative for HMRC in the past, with £18 collected in additional tax for every £1 spent by local compliance teams in 2013-14. As such, an increasing number of entrepreneurs and SMEs are likely to find themselves under the watchful eye of compliance teams in the coming months.
Get protected
In most cases if your business is selected for a compliance visit it
will be because the HMRC suspect you may be doing things incorrectly. If
you file your returns on time, pay your tax on time, and explain any
large variations to current year figures compared to previous year
figures, then you will be sending a strong message that you know what
you are doing, that you understand your responsibilities, and that you
are running your business in a compliant fashion.
However, if you are ever sought out for an investigation, ActSmart's subscription packages come with tax investigation protection as standard, so you can be safe in the knowledge that you'll be covered against any of the costs incurred as a result of having to supply information to HMRC.
If you need any advice on what your business is required to do, ActSmart subscribers have 24/7 access to our business support and legal helplines which can help you to stay up to date with HMRC changes.
To make sure your business is covered, join ActSmart today.
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