Government plans to reduce non-compliance

Several consultations concerning tax compliance have been published after the chancellor’s spring statement.

Enhancing HMRC’s ability to tackle tax advisers facilitating non-compliance

This explores options to give HMRC further powers to act against advisers who facilitate tax non-compliance in their clients’ tax affairs. Proposals include enhancing HMRC’s powers to investigate and obtain information from tax advisers such as where HMRC ‘reasonably suspect the tax adviser has facilitated’ an inaccuracy in a return. The intention is to ‘bring the information powers for tax advisers in line with those for taxpayers and third parties’ in FA 2008 Sch 36.

Other proposals include sharing more information about tax advisers with their professional bodies reforming penalties for taxpayers who ‘cause harm to the tax system’ along with the power to publish information about a tax adviser who is subject to an HMRC sanction.

Responses should be...