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An accountant who grossly under-declared his income has been jailed for 16 months, after pleading guilty to seven tax fraud offences totalling in excess of £65,000.
HMRC found Stephen Douce, co-director of ACA Accountancy Services Ltd, Derby, claimed he and his wife both had an annual household income of only £4,500, when in fact he earned more than £56,000 a year.
His false self assessment submissions meant he evaded income tax and National Insurance contributions of £18,203.79 for himself and £1,591.21 for his wife.
An accountant who grossly under-declared his income has been jailed for 16 months, after pleading guilty to seven tax fraud offences totalling in excess of £65,000.
HMRC found Stephen Douce, co-director of ACA Accountancy Services Ltd, Derby, claimed he and his wife both had an annual household income of only £4,500, when in fact he earned more than £56,000 a year.
His false self assessment submissions meant he evaded income tax and National Insurance contributions of £18,203.79 for himself and £1,591.21 for his wife.
He also pocketed £31,805.07 in VAT payments from his clients for more than five years, and illegally claimed £14,111.11 in tax credits over two years.
The Revenue’s assistant director of criminal investigation, Stuart Taylor, HMRC, said, “As an accountant, Douce was in a position of trust and well aware he was breaking the law. He chose the opportunity of making what he wrongly assumed would be easy money, at the expense of UK taxpayers. He now has to pay the price for his criminal activities.”
