Readers’ forum: Correct tax treatment for self-employed person based abroad.

A UK resident person gives professional advice. He wants to go and live abroad but continue his profession. He asked me whether he could give professional advice from a location abroad to people in the UK by Zoom meetings and phone.

Originally I thought that it was all right and his work would not be subject to UK tax because he would only be located abroad and not visit the UK at all.

The fact that he may spend all day on Zoom meetings and on the phone to people in the UK would not count.

But then I saw the Employment Income Manual at EIM40203 and 40204 which implied that in HMRC’s opinion such Zoom meetings and phone meetings are ‘not merely incidental duties’.

Admittedly those pages are talking about an employee and I am dealing with...