EBT HELL: Assignment Solutions Isle Of Man / Premier Tax Strategies / DMS

[webberg]

Agree with the above.

We often hear clients saying that they are

"self employed via my own company"

That makes no sense.

A self employed person will be a sole trader or perhaps in partnership.

If you have a company of which you are a director, you are an office holder and/or employee of the company.

In tax terms, in that situation, the company and you are separate tax personalities.

[piebaps]

Toone & Ors v Ross & Anor, Re Implement Consulting Ltd [2019] EWHC 2855 (Ch) (30 October 2019)

This judgement may be of interest.

[webberg]

Toone & Ors v Ross & Anor, Re Implement Consulting Ltd [2019] EWHC 2855 (Ch) (30 October 2019)

This judgement may be of interest.

Yes it is.

I've been reading it this afternoon and have produced what is not so much an analysis as a series of questions as to how far the judgement extends.

In short, is this limited to companies in some form of insolvency - or which has completed an insolvency but can be reinstated - or is the decision that a payment to an EBT is an unlawful distribution of company capital, one that can apply in circumstances outside insolvency?

If it is the case that money taken from a company whilst in insolvency and there is a possibility/probability that HMRC wants tax, which the directors are responsible for, then all those who sold mass marketed schemes might be rather uncomfortable this afternoon.

[hobobond]

Hi All, -

I just got my annual letter from HMRC referencing my use of ASIOM as a scheme. They have provided no additional details. I used ASIOM for about 6 to 9 months in 2003-2004. My tax returns online at HMRC don't go back that far and nor does my bank account statements. How will HMRC know the loan amount? I can only guess the amount myself. I moved to the US in 2008 and have not earned UK taxable income in about 10 years.

Also...... I signed up with Dow Schofield Watts Tax Resolution Services in October 2018 and paid them GBP 1500 to work with HMRC on my behalf. I sent them all my documentation but they didn't deliver anything and looks like the people I was working with have left. Has anybody else had a similar experience?

Thanks!

[hobobond]

Maybe I just answered my own question from reading this FT article but if I am not in scope because I pre-date 2010, why are HMRC sending me letters? I'm so freaking confused!

The loan charge no longer applies to loans entered into as far back as April 1999 — instead it only applies on loans after December 9 2010

Loan charge deadline reignites debate over tax fairness | Financial Times (ft.com)
https://www.ft.com/content/3828b4ce-...2-a2a5f2da617f

The loan charge: a recap
The loan charge was announced in the 2016 Budget, to come into effect in 2019. The anti-avoidance measure was designed to address the tax lost to the exchequer from various “disguised remuneration” schemes — which avoided income tax and national insurance by paying people in loans not intended to be repaid. The policy required about 50,000 people who had used the schemes to settle their debts with HM Revenue & Customs before April 5 2019 or face the charge — and pay tax on up to 20 years of income in the 2018-19 financial year. Following an outcry from MPs, peers, professional bodies and campaigners over the extreme distress the policy was causing — including several reported suicides — the government commissioned an independent review in September 2019. Led by Sir Amyas Morse, former head of the National Audit Office, the review concluded the loan charge had failed to “get the balance right between tackling tax avoidance and protecting the rights of taxpayers”. He made 19 recommendations — all but one of which was accepted by the government. The key changes include: The loan charge no longer applies to loans entered into as far back as April 1999 — instead it only applies on loans after December 9 2010, as Sir Amyas argued the law was “not clear” before 2010. The loan charge no longer applies to loans entered into after December 2010 and up to April 6 2016 where a “reasonable disclosure” of the scheme was made to HMRC and the authority did not take action. Rather than needing to pay the loan charge all in one tax year, people can spread it evenly across three tax years: 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21. 30 September deadline: Those affected need to file their 2018-19 self-assessment tax return by September 30 2020, reporting any loan balances subject to the loan charge. Individuals who are not settling, and therefore become liable to pay the loan charge, will need to pay the charge that is due on September 30 or agree a so-called “time to pay” arrangement with HMRC before then.