Churchill Tax Advisers blogs and news
03300 577106Family Investment Companies
What is a Family Investment Company or FIC? In many ways, a FIC is nothing more than a company which holds a pool of investments for a family. Now that trusts are not tax-efficient, a FIC can offer the same sort of structuring but without the tax costs. A FIC also...
“Furlough Fraud” – 20 October Deadline
As the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) payments scheme comes to an end HMRC’s investigations of alleged fraud will increase. Media reports estimate that £3.5 Billion of payments have been made by the Government to fraudulent claims or errors. There have...
Churchill Tax Successfully Defend Client Against Insolvency Service
Churchill Tax Advisers have recently assisted our client in defending himself against the Insolvency Service who were seeking his disqualification as a director. Working with the client we were able to demonstrate that his behaviour, which had been considered...
Churchill Tax’s Advice Saves Company Penalties
Churchill Tax Advisers have successfully assisted a medical clinic that had been under investigation regarding the exemption of its supplies. HMRC believed that the supplies being made were taxable at the STANDARD RATE. Working with our client we were able to...
Late Filing Penalties
There have been many decisions released in the last few weeks in relation to late filing penalties and the various reasons why this has occurred. I will not set out any one case, but would seek to remind our readers, that excuses such as a reliance on an accountant or...
Peterborough Plant Sales Limited v HMRC
The FTT rejected the company’s appeal against HMRC’s refusal to allow input tax to be credited in relation to the purchase of plant and machinery. Nine purchases had been made from vendors who had subsequently become “missing” and who had not declared the VAT that had...
SC CF SRL. V Romanian Tax Authorities
This case has been recently released by the ECJ. It seeks to address some of the issues around the implementation of the Kittel principle. Although the case started in relation to a criminal investigation that went nowhere, the subsequent civil litigation where there...
£3.5billion Furlough Loans Could Be Errors Or Fraud
Up to £3.5 billion could have been paid out in wrong or fraudulent claims for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the government suspects. Jim Harra, the top civil servant at HMRC, said that his staff believe between five per cent and 10 per cent of CJRS cash might...
UK Firms Voluntary Return Of £215million In Furlough Cash
80,433 employers have returned over £215million of furlough money to the government who found they did not need it or took it in error. The loans were given to cover the salaries of their workers, according to figures from the HMRC. The companies and other bodies have...
Restaurant Owner Faces 7-years Behind Bars Or Pay £1.2million
A restaurant owner who laundered cash stolen by his VAT fraudster wife has been told he could face an extra seven-and-a-half years in jail if he does not pay £1.2 million. Yong Hong Lu, 52, of Farnham, Surrey, was jailed for two years last May after HMRC investigation...
HMRC close a complex ongoing tax investigation without adjustments
This case came to us from another firm of accountants in London. It involved our client being under investigation for undeclared capital gains and rental income for a number of years. The client’s previous accountant and the client had previously written to the tax...
Inheritance and Capital Gains Tax Strategies
This client came to us following a recommendation by their accountant for strategic inheritance tax and capital gains tax planning. The client had accumulated a number of properties over time and wished to pass these onto their children. There is usually friction...
Working families affected by Coronavirus are given an extra boost
Families who benefit from government funded childcare support were given a boost today as the Government announced that they would not lose out due to COVID-19. Working parents or carers, who having been claiming for Tax-Free Childcare or 30 Hours Free Childcare but...
Four arrested in HMRC phone scam
Two men and two women have been arrested as part of an investigation into a suspected multi-million pound HMRC phone scam set up to target UK taxpayers. HM Revenue and Customs officers carried out searches at five addresses in East and West London on 28th July. They...
Mirza Shahary Baig v HMRC
The Appellant was a retailer of dresswear and equestrian apparel. He had no shop, but operated from his domestic premises. He sold to market traders and primarily received cash as payment. He had been VAT registered since May 2000. Selected for a pre-credibility check...
Withington FFC Services Limited (A) and NNS Services Limited (B) v HMRC
Co A sold a fried chicken business to Co B and the transaction was treated as transfer of a going concern. HMRC visited and issued a compulsory registration for Co B as the turnover was threshold for VAT registration at the time the TOGC took place. Co A were also...
Anthony John Preston v HMRC
This case was decided on the papers in the First-tier Tribunal (Tax). This was part of the Covid-19 protocol and it meant that there was no hearing with the parties present. The Appellant had submitted a self-assessment tax return but had not sufficient funds to meet...
Payne v R & C Commrs [2020] BTC 19, in the Court of Appeal (“Coca Cola” van case)
This is the third time this appeal has been before the Judges with the Appellants losing most of their points at the First and Upper Tax Tribunals. It has been, and remains, a difficult case for the layperson to follow what all the fuss is about. The point at issue is...
Jones v R & C Commrs [2020] BTC 556, in the Upper Tax Tribunal (“UTT”)
This was an appeal against an FTT decision. Jones’ termination payment from her employment was under investigation and appeal. The UTT decided differently to the First Tier, and said that HMRC had failed to prove the culpability of Jones and hadn’t established...
A Suspected Furlough Fraud Of £495,000 From A West Midlands Man
A West Midlands man has been arrested as part of an HMRC investigation into a suspected £495,000 Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) fraud. HMRC officers executed a search warrant on 8th July and arrested the 57-year-old I the Solihull area. This is the first...
Tax credits deadline, don’t lose out
Tax credits customers have until the 31st July 2020 to tell HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) about changes to their circumstances or income. If you have received a letter to reconfirm their income details must contact HMRC if your circumstances have changed. Failure to...
Hospitality Industry Welcomes HMRC Eat Out to Help Out Scheme
Restaurants and other establishments that serve food for consumption on a premises can now sign up to a new government scheme aimed to prevent loss of employment in the hospitality industry and encourage people to safely return to dining out. The Eat Out to Help Out...
Finance Bill 2020
This year’s Finance Bill received Royal Assent on 22 July 2020 and will now pass into law as the Finance Act 2020. There are a lot of new items, here are the headlines: Loan Charge (Disguised Remuneration) Possible repayments for existing settlements can now start to...
Furlough Fraud
CJRS (Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme) and SEISS (Self-Employment Income Support Scheme) grants knowingly misused can be a charged as a criminal offence. If HMRC open an enquiry and do not prosecute, the Officers can pursue penalties up to 100% of the tax due. The...
The case of K E Entertainments Ltd [2020]
K E Entertainments Ltd [2020] was a case relating to the recovery from HMRC of overpaid VAT in relation to supplies of Bingo, where the tax treatment of the supply had changed. The taxpayer tried to recover all the tax overpaid, over a considerable period of time, but...