hhheeeeeeelllllpppppp...

[itwasntme]

hello!

I have been contracting since 1990 as an IT engineer. I'm good on IT, I'm not good at accounting.

Until around 2003, my accounts were done by a friend of mine and I never had to do anything save fill in timesheets and expenses. life was easy!

In 2003 my pal retired and so I had to get someone else to open and run a new Ltd company. I was only an employee of this new Ltd company and he was director with a colleague as company secretary. I was still effectively a one man band.

I basically had a nightmare with the new accountant and recently gave up and started a new Ltd company with a new accountant who is very good.

In terms of closing down my last company, I have had a number of emails from the IR stating that I owed around 20K in unpaid PAYE over a period of about three years, which was absolute news to me. On looking back through and really understanding the books, it is clear that I did in fact have the money representing those amounts of PAYE. However, since I was blindly spending )as I had before when being looked after in luxury by my previous accountant), and have not put the 20K aside.

Also, the Corporation Tax department are after me for a further 5K.

I checked with Companies House and the company was struck off a week or so ago.

Can the IR still come after me for PAYE / corporation tax?

any guidance/advice appreciated.

[Bluebird]

you need an accountant and a solicitor - are you a member of the PCG at all ?

[XLMonkey]

Can the IR still come after me for PAYE / corporation tax?

Hmm... not absolutely sure. The directors of a company are under a statutory duty to ensure that it pays its PAYE and Corporation tax. If they don't, then they can be personally sue by HMRC (effectively, its theft from the Exchequer).

So, your friend (who was the director) can definitely be sued. However, you could also be sued if:
- you were also a director of the company, OR
- you knew that you were receiving a salary without PAYE being deducted (so, did you receive payslips showing tax deductions or not? if you don't have payslips to prove it, then you must have known that the tax wasn't being deducted at source and should have declared it)

What it boils down to is: someone, somewhere, has the 25k that hasn't been given to the taxman. Whoever that someone is (you? your friend?) is going to be in serious trouble if they don't cough up very quickly.

[itwasntme]

Thanks XL Monkey. This is right and makes absolute sense. I guess the big question here is around the fact that the company has been struck off.

I understand that the IR are required to ensure that they continue to notify companies house that a companyshould not be struck off if there is outstanding tax due. I guess, this is wher a solicitor comes into it.

where do i find a solicitor who specialises in this field?

cheers

[Cooperinliverp00l]

Put your head between your legs and kiss your ass goodbye. I'm no expert but it sounds like your screwed ?

Good Luck

[Bluebird]

Thanks XL Monkey. This is right and makes absolute sense. I guess the big question here is around the fact that the company has been struck off.

I understand that the IR are required to ensure that they continue to notify companies house that a companyshould not be struck off if there is outstanding tax due. I guess, this is wher a solicitor comes into it.

where do i find a solicitor who specialises in this field?

cheers

PCG

[max]

Put your head between your legs and kiss your ass goodbye. I'm no expert but it sounds like your screwed ?

Good Luck

HMRC must have signed off on the company closure. I would have thought they'd have to go to the high court to reopen.

Not sure on the PAYE..but CT should be ok.

Anyway PCG legal help line should be first point of call.

[Andy2]

buy some vaseline and wait for the taxman

[xoggoth]

NAA but I cannot see why an employee would be responsible for CT, there is no legal reason why should you should have been assumed to know it was not being paid correctly. How come PAYE problems weren't picked up earlier? were there no annual forms sent? No personal tax returns?

In your circumstances I would be asking your good new accountant rather than us lot as I daresay arrangements can be made to pay it off over time, even the IR are not that unreasonable.

[TheFaQQer]

NAA but I cannot see why an employee would be responsible for CT, there is no legal reason why should you should have been assumed to know it was not being paid correctly. How come PAYE problems weren't picked up earlier? were there no annual forms sent? No personal tax returns?

In your circumstances I would be asking your good new accountant rather than us lot as I daresay arrangements can be made to pay it off over time, even the IR are not that unreasonable.

An employee probably wouldn't be held responsible, but the managing director of a company ceratinly could be - if the company doesn't have the money to pay the tax man then I would think that there is possibly a charge of embezlement.

At the very least, it sounds like you won't be a company director for a number of years.