Call us on 01792 466 428
Book a FREE Consulation

HMRC Launch South Wales Property Taskforce

croppedball

HMRC has this month launched new specialist taskforces designed to target individuals who have not declared rental income or capital gains on property disposals in the South West and South Wales.

The taskforces are part of the Government’s campaign to tackle tax evasion and fraud.  HMRC aims to raise an additional £7bn each year through the various taskforces it has launched since May 2011.

It is important to note that the targeting of sectors is not an amnesty and unlike some other HMRC initiatives which seek to tempt taxpayers to come forward under favourable terms there is no formal disclosure facility on offer when individuals are targeted by a taskforce.  HMRC will therefore have the full range of civil and criminal powers available to them, which include paying unpaid tax with interest and penalties. In extreme cases criminal charges can also be brought, indeed a taxpayer from a previous property taskforce in the home counties now has a criminal record.

Under the new South West and South Wales taskforce HMRC has identified potential £5m of unpaid tax, they will be contacting property letting agents to obtain details of landlords on their books as well as utilising the Land Registry and Valuations Office to obtain evidence of property disposals. HMRC has invested heavily in new computer systems to collate information, however as with all computerised systems there can be many reasons why the information can give misleading results.  Additionally under-reporting can be inadvertent, either by an innocent mistake or by misunderstand obligations. HMRC letters can give the opposite impression, making a mistake is not a crime provided the mistake is rectified as soon as it has been noticed.

Should a taxpayer get an enquiry from HMRC the most important thing is to take early advice. For more information on this topic please contact Martin Hudson or Mark Robinson