Lecture Services

Paul Lynam is a much sought after, highly experienced and respected speaker at professional training events and workshops on Tax Enquiry and related topics.
He lectures regularly as a guest of the ACCA, ICAEW, CIOT, AAT and STEP.  He has also given presentations to City banks, brokers, the National Association of Pension Funds and even to HM Revenue & Customs!  He has provided courses on Tax Investigation and Tax Dispute issues for a number of professional training course organisers and whilst at KPMG presented annually for 10 years at their National Tax Training event.  Paul is also a Consultant to the ICAEW's Tax Faculty referral scheme for members; specialising in Tax Appeals, Enquiries and Serious Tax Investigations.

Topics on which Paul is currently lecturing include:

• Tax Amnesties
• Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility
• New HMRC Enquiry Powers – the new regime from 1st April 2009
• The New Tax Penalties systems
• New Time Limits for Assessments and Claims from 2010
• The Tax Tribunals and Internal Reviews: taking contentious Tax Appeals.

If you are thinking of organising a seminar and would like to discuss using Paul’s services then please contact him on 0845 643 9997 or email him at: partners@lynamtax.co.uk.

Upcoming lectures

National ACCA Residential Conferences for Practitioners: Hinckley, Leicestershire 26th November 2010, 17.00 – 18.30.
Course outline: ‘Back Duty’ Enquiries in the New Compliance Check Regime: a practical survival guide and workshop

• Key aspects of the major changes to: Time Limits, Enquiry Powers and Penalties;
• Practical familiarity and confidence through real life case studies and worked examples of each key point;
• Definitions of the new categories for re-opening earlier years and incurring penalties;
• Effective changes to the “Enquiry Window” and “Discovery” provisions;
• How penalties are incurred, reduced, suspended and averted;
• Interaction with the various “Tax Amnesties”;
• New appeal and review routes, safeguards and protections.
  
  Course bookings (for ACCA members) : http://www.uk.accaglobal.com

Recent lectures

National ACCA Residential Conferences for Practitioners: Loughborough 9th July 2010.
Course outline: ‘Back Duty’ Enquiries in the New Compliance Check Regime: a practical survival guide and workshop.  For details see above.

National ACCA training event, London 17 November 2009:  COURSE OUTLINE: The Perfect Storm: New HMRC Enquiry & Penalty Regimes: Date:     17 Nov 2009.  Duration:     16:00 - 19:00
Venue:     ACCA UK, 29 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3EE

The powers of HMRC to inspect records, require information, raise assessments and enter premises changed completely and radically 1st April 2009.  Enquiries are out, Compliance Checks are in. The new “rules of engagement” give HMRC extensive and intrusive new powers, with few safeguards for the business taxpayer and new penalties for non-compliance.  There is also the New Unitary Penalty Regime for incorrect and late returns with new offences covering all taxes.  Practitioners dealing with enquiries or receiving information notices need to understand the new regulations and be vigilant in upholding the few safeguards.


WHAT WILL I GET OUT OF IT?

• Full understanding of key aspects of the new legislation;
• Practical familiarity through real life Case Studies covering key points;
• Ability to advise and protect your clients and your practice;
• Confidence dealing with the all new 2009 Compliance Check regime.

KEY FEATURES

• Radical new Enquiry and Compliance Checking powers for HMRC;
• End of ‘Enquiry Window’ and ‘Discovery’ protections;
• Visits to premises and private homes: and penalties for obstruction;
• Major Changes to the assessing and claim time limits;
• New Penalty ‘Offences’: How penalties are incurred, reduced and averted;
• New Appeal and Review routes, safeguards and protections.
• CPD Units*:     3.
  

LECTURER: Paul Lynam, Senior Partner, Lynam Tax Enquiry Experts

The New Appeals Process: From 1st April 2009: joint talk to the East Midlands' CIOT and ACCA
Presented by Paul Lynam of Lynam Tax Enquiry Experts

• The manner in which HMRC deals with appeals and the formal bodies which deal with tax appeals have been completely overhauled;
• The General and Special Commissioners and the VAT Tribunals have been disbanded.  A new professional set of Tax Tribunals, administered by the Ministry of Justice, took their place from 1st April 2009;
• At the same time HMRC introduced an Internal Review procedure which can be followed instead of, or prior to, the full Tribunal regime;
• HMRC will decide whether to litigate or not using their Litigation and Settlement Strategy;
• Under the new regime costs will not normally be awarded except where either party has behaved unreasonably and in complex cases;
• There are new appeal rules for the new Penalty Regime and the new Compliance Check Regime: which will affect the current Closure Notice appeal route;
• Appeals on procedural matters may also be pursued internally or via MPs, The Revenue Adjudicator, the Ombudsman or by way of Judicial Review;
• Professional costs compensation and aggravation payments can also be sought;
• Familiarity with the new appeal procedures is essential for practitioners assisting clients in HMRC disputes and enquiries.
• CPD Hours: 1.5

Seminar to STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), Leicester 29th June 2009 on The New Tax Penalty Regime.

Lecture on Tax Investigation issues in April 2009 for the ICAEW in Leicestershire and Northants, on “New HMRC Enquiry Powers”

The powers of HM Revenue and Customs to inspect business records, require information, raise assessments and enter premises have been completely and radically re-written.  HMRC plan to bring them into effect from 1st April 2009.  Most commentators feel that the new “Rules of Engagement” of a tax enquiry give the taxman extensive and intrusive new powers, with very few safeguards for the business taxpayer, but with new penalties for failures to comply.  It is essential for practitioners who deal with tax enquiries and investigations or who receive Information Notices to become thoroughly familiar with the new regulations and to be vigilant in upholding the few safeguards.

At a seminar organised by the ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales) Paul Lynam (senior partner in Lynam Tax: specialists in managing Tax Enquiries) will cover the key aspects of the new legislation (Schedules 36-37 FA 2008), including:

• Information can be sought outside of an enquiry, for all taxes, for all years, in relation to past, present and even future tax liabilities;
• New rules on business record keeping requirements;
• Alignment of rules across all main taxes;
• “Real time” tax inspections;
• Visits to premises (and homes) can be made with only 7 calendar days notice – and without notice on occasions;
• Harsh penalties for obstruction;
• Very limited rights of appeal;
• 3rd parties to have to produce information as well as documents;
• Safeguards mainly in “internal guidance” to be rewritten and policed by HMRC;
• The end of the “Discovery” restriction – no more certainty?
• Changes to the assessing time limits;
• New “offences” for extended time limit assessing.