Taxation logo taxation mission text

Since 1927 the leading authority on tax law, practice and administration

Fight against fraud

26 January 2016 / Allison Plager
Issue: 4535 / Categories: Comment & Analysis , Compliance
istock_000023874967_fu_fmt

How efficient is HMRC’s fight against tax fraud? A dip into a recent National Audit Office report.

KEY POINTS

  • Tax fraud results in the loss of £16bn annually.
  • Smaller businesses and organised crime pose the greatest risk.
  • HMRC need better data to evaluate the problem.
  • What are the benefits of prosecutions?

Some £16bn is lost in tax fraud each year according to the National Audit Office (NAO). This is nearly half of HMRC’s estimate of the total tax gap (£34bn).

In its report  Tackling tax fraud: how HMRC respond to tax evasion the hidden economy and criminal attacks the NAO concludes that the department needs to improve the way it uses data and analysis to understand the effect of its actions in the fight against fraud.

...

If you or your firm subscribes to Taxation.co.uk, please click the login box below:

If you are not a subscriber but are a registered user or have a free trial, please enter your details in the following boxes:

Alternatively, you can register free of charge to read a limited amount of subscriber content per month.
Once you have registered, you will receive an email directing you back to read this item in full.

Please reach out to customer services at +44 (0) 330 161 1234 or 'customer.services@lexisnexis.co.uk' for further assistance.

back to top icon