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9am lowdown: HMRC wins £29m avoidance case

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24th Jul 2015
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As NASA brings us the news of Earth 2.0 , HMRC offers their inhabitants a stern warning in today's lowdown: Tax avoidance and cigarette smuggling will not be tolerated.

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HMRC wins £29m avoidance case

HMRC has defeated an artificial tax avoidance scheme involving the Brain Disorders Research Limited Partnership and Neil Hockin (one of the partners), after the first-tier tribunal ruled against the users’ attempts to claim £29m in tax relief. The investors claimed to have spent £122m on research, when in fact only £7m reached the genuine research company.

The aim of the scheme was to enable investors to make large claims to interest relief on their borrowings. Large capital allowances claims were also made. However, the tribunal found that as the partnership was not trading, no tax relief was due.

Jennie Granger, HMRC director general, enforcement and compliance, said: "This win sends a clear message to those who still try to market and use tax avoidance schemes – HMRC will continue to challenge them, in the courts if necessary."

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HMRC targets app economy  

HMRC plans to extend its data gathering powers to tackle tax evasion in the ‘app economy’ using data from app stores and online platforms. They believe that this will provide them with information on online businesses which have not declared the full value of their sales.

 “The digital economy generates huge profits and HMRC clearly believe that they can raise additional revenue by targeting the sector – this is the latest in a long line of aggressive moves by HMRC to boost tax intake,” Roy Maugham, tax partner at UHY Hacker Young, explained.

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Cigarette smuggler sentenced

A London man who used a specially adapted coat in a bid to smuggle cigarettes into the UK has been sentenced after HMRC carried out an investigation.

Officers from Border Force found 6,400 Marlboro Gold cigarettes in Jabbar Sattar’s luggage and a further 800 cigarettes hidden inside his coat when he arrived on a flight from Morocco.  Sattar had attempted to create a secret compartment by cutting the lining and using safety pins to hold the goods in place.

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By Scriptic
26th Jul 2015 09:48

Avoidance?

If tax relief of £29 million is claimed for £122 million for "research" when only £7 million was actually spent, this is surely evasion not avoidance?

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