New statistics show £300m lost to offshore tax gap on over 7million accounts held overseas likely to be gross underestimate
HMRC’s first estimate of the offshore tax gap for 2018, seems a wild underestimate at just £300 million based on questionable methodological choices.
New statistics show HMRC’s clampdown on R&D claims beginning to take effect
Latest HMRC figures show the cost of R&D relief claims increasing but in relation to fewer claims being made for 2022-23. This implies HMRC’s compliance changes are discouraging claims that are less likely to be qualifying, especially those of lower value or in particular sectors.
Unveiling the latest Box office smash hit: Creative industry tax relief reach record highs
Record levels of tax relief claimed by the creative industries sector in 2023. The reliefs are now dominated by fewer, extremely large, claims for film and ‘high-end’ TV programmes. TaxWatch questions whether these reliefs offer good value for money given the profitability of expensive productions in light of changes to the Audio Visual Expenditure Credit.
The SME R&D tax relief scheme: lessons in how not to implement a tax relief
Once again, the National Audit Office qualified HMRC’s accounts due to a “material level of error and fraud in Corporation Tax research and development reliefs”. Whilst the good news is that the estimated error rate within the relief is coming down it remains unacceptably high. It has taken years for HMRC to admit there were problems, despite plenty of warnings, and action has been too slow to avoid the situation getting totally out of hand.
TaxWatch’s summary of the UK General Election party manifestos
TaxWatch reflects on the party manifestos for the upcoming General Election
The uncertain future of the UK’s Digital Services Tax
TaxWatch reflects on the Liberal Democrat proposal to hike Digital Services Tax
Gold plating tax reliefs for the silver screen
What are the implications of the additional fiscal support given to the creative industries in the Spring Budget, and do the changes provide value for money?
TaxWatch responds to the Spring Budget 2024
The TaxWatch team focuses its thoughts on a few areas of the Budget statement it found particularly interesting, from a tax compliance and administration standpoint.
Would scrapping furnished holiday let tax benefits really raise £300m?
Abolishing preferential tax rules for furnished holiday lets owners will only raise the speculated revenue if the compliance rules are carefully thought out.