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Dec 17
HMRC’s Latest Voluntary Disclosure Targets Solicitors
The latest voluntary disclosure opportunity is aimed at solicitors, and has a 9 March 2015 deadline to take part.
As with all HMRC’s campaigns, the Solicitors’ Tax Campaign aims to encourage people to come forward and bring their tax affairs up to date. If they do not use the opportunity to make a voluntary disclosure, they face heavier penalties and possibly prosecution if HMRC catches up with them later. HMRC will use third party information, gathered via its Connect computer system, to identify solicitors whom it thinks have undeclared income or gains but who do not come forward. Deadlines for the Solicitors’ Tax Campaign As in most of HMRC’s campaigns aimed at specific trades or professions, there are two stages to making a disclosure:
- notifying HMRC, which must be done by 9 March 2015; and then
- making the disclosure and paying the tax plus interest and penalties, which must be done by9 June 2015.
As well as encouraging disclosure generally, HMRC is specifically asking that solicitors with outstanding self-assessment tax returns for any of the years 2010/11, 2011/12 and 2012/13 to submit them by 31 December 2014. HMRC will be writing to those concerned and will vigorously chase up outstanding returns and make determinations.
Who can take part?
“Solicitor” in this context means solicitors who work within the legal profession, which could be:
- a sole practitioner
- a partner or employee in a legal firm
- an employee in a company.
HMRC say this list is not exhaustive. Presumably it would also cover solicitors working in joint legal and accountancy practices. A perhaps surprising feature of this campaign is that as well as making a disclosure in a personal capacity, a solicitor can disclosure on behalf of others:
- on behalf of someone else, eg if the solicitor is a personal representative of a deceased person;
- on behalf of a company, if the solicitor is a company director or company secretary.
HMRC is not likely to accept disclosures under this campaign where it has already started an enquiry or where serious organised crime is involved. There is more information at www.gov.uk/solicitors-tax-campaign online, including links to forms and detailed guidance. HMRC also has a helpline, 0300 013 4749.
