Tax legislation, and the decisions of tax courts and tribunals, can sometimes appear to be full of surprises. The decision of the UK’s Court of Appeal in Hargreaves Property Holdings Limited [2024] EWCA Civ 365,...more
Companies must approach HMRC with suitable care when proposing a restructuring plan, mindful of lessons learned from recent case law. Ever since unpaid taxes due to HMRC were “crammed down” pursuant to a restructuring plan...more
The UK’s First-tier Tribunal (“FTT”) has denied a taxpayer a deduction for contributions to a remuneration trust on the basis that such payments did not give rise to an expense under generally accepted accounting principles...more
UK Case Law Developments - Taxpayer treated as receiving distribution in tax avoidance case - We reported on First-tier Tribunal’s (FTT’s) decision in Dunsby v Revenue & Customs in our June 2020 UK Tax Round Up. By way...more
The Chancellor of the Exchequer delivered the United Kingdom (“UK”) Autumn Budget for 2021 on 27 October 2021. The Budget was delivered against the backdrop of the UK’s ongoing recovery from the Covid‑19 pandemic and the...more
In Haworth v HMRC the Supreme Court (SC) upheld the Court of Appeal’s (CA’s) decision to quash a follower notice (FN) and accelerated payment notice (APN) issued to the taxpayer, Mr Haworth. An FN can be issued by HMRC where...more
UK Case Law Developments - Income tax consequences of pension-related payments in E.ON v HMRC - E.ON v HMRC concerned a large UK power and gas supplier, which paid certain lump sum payments, called “facilitation...more
Tax avoidance is the process of manipulating tax rules to reduce the amount of tax payable and obtaining a financial advantage that was never the intention of the legislation. A typical example of tax avoidance involves the...more
Spring Budget and Tax Day - After months of speculation about the possibility that capital gains tax (CGT) rates would be increased in the Spring Budget, both it and the government’s follow up “Tax Day” on 23 March passed...more
UK Case Law Developments - EIS relief not available for shares carrying preferential rights - The Upper Tribunal (UT) in Foojit v HMRC dismissed the taxpayer’s appeal against the First-tier Tribunal’s (FTT’s) decision...more
With effect from December 1, 2020, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs ("HMRC") ranks ahead of floating charge holders and unsecured creditors with respect to recovering certain pre-insolvency taxes from an insolvent business...more
UK COVID-19 Developments - Extension of support for retail, leisure and hospitality businesses - Further to the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (or furlough scheme), reported in the November issue of...more
UK COVID-19 Developments - Extension of support for employed and self-employed workers - On 5 November, the UK Chancellor announced the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (or furlough scheme) to the end...more
UK COVID-19 Developments - Furlough not detrimental to EMI options held on 19 March 2020 - On 26 June, the government introduced a new provision into the Finance Bill that provides that the period during which an...more
Corporate criminal offences (CCOs) under Part 3 Criminal Finances Act 2017 (CFA) are increasingly coming under the spotlight of the UK tax authorities. In a 10 February 2020 press release published in response to a Freedom of...more
UK Case Law Developments - Valid notice crucial to tax indemnity claim - The Court of Appeal (CA) decision in Stobart Group Ltd v Stobart and another is a cautionary tale for any purchaser who, following the...more
HMRC has released a consultation document in respect of its draft regulations implementing the EU mandatory tax disclosure rules that will apply from 1 July 2020 to intermediaries and relevant taxpayers in relation to...more
UK General Tax Developments - HMRC updates guidance on what constitutes "ordinary share capital" - Following the decision by the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) in Warshaw V HMRC, reported in our UK tax blog earlier this...more
The Chancellor of the Exchequer delivered the UK Budget for 2017 on 22 November 2017. Delivered against the backdrop of the UK’s ongoing negotiations to exit from the European Union, the Budget featured a significant...more
The Chancellor of the Exchequer delivered the UK Budget for 2016 on 16 March 2016. The Budget was delivered against the backdrop of international tax developments, relating to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and...more