Another amnesty is being prepared by HMRC to draw in more unpaid taxes.
The scheme know as the “New Disclosure Opportunity” may allow for reduced penalties for tax-dodgers who voluntarily disclose their offshore bank accounts.
The scheme follows in the footsteps of more aggressive promises from HMRC to forensically target the estates of the 4,000 richest families in Britain.
Currently, offshore account holders who wait for the government to investigate them face 70-100% penalties on top of their overdue tax. This new incentive could massively reduce these penalties, perhaps as much as a similar scheme launched in 2007, which charged a flat rate of 10% and netted 400 million pounds.
The recent budget report has taken a familiarly hard line against offshore accounts.
“Offshore accounts are being used by some to shield undeclared taxable income….Tax evasion and avoidance undermine fiscal sustainability, damage the delivery of policy objectives, impose significant costs on society and shift a greater tax burden on to ordinary taxpayers.”
Source: Telegraph
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Those individuals choosing to participate in the scheme will be expected to settle the tax owed, interest thereon and a reduced penalty by 31 March 2010. For these individuals there is a high chance HMRC will accept the figures and move on, so peace of mind for these individuals could be achieved by taking advantage of this opportunity. However, those individuals choosing not to avail themselves of the scheme risk detailed investigations and possible prosecution.