HMRC has published the latest Deliberate Tax Defaulters list covering the 6 months to November 2020. The “Tax Naughty List” is posted online and sent to newspaper editors to “name and shame” people who have deliberately underdeclared their taxable income or gains. There are 135 individuals and businesses listed this time.

Usually, every 3 months, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs publishes details of people and businesses that were investigated and: charged penalties for fraudulent errors in their Tax Returns, or deliberately failing to register with HMRC; and where the underdeclared tax is more than £25,000. The taxman doesn’t release details if the taxpayer makes an unprompted disclosure, or fully cooperates once a Tax Enquiry has begun.
The November 2020 list was delayed due to Covid-19 and includes 135 individuals and businesses across the UK.

There is the typical varied mixture of businesses: with, as usual, Chinese and Indian restaurants vying for who has the most restaurant owners’ details published. And there is now a smattering of share fishermen too!

The businesses and individuals who had to pay the highest amounts of tax and penalties (in addition to having their details published) were:

• Amber Motor Company Ltd (previously EJH2 Ltd), Smethwick: £5.8 million;
• Rajansankar Kulajeevarajah, alcohol wholesaler, East Ham, London: £3.4M;
• Xiao Qin Wang, takeaway, Coningsby, Lincolnshire: £2.6M;
• Shaun Nigel Dixon, waste handler, Skellingthorpe, Lincolnshire: £2.5M;
• Elite Luxury Watches Ltd, Huddersfield: £2.1 million.
• UCS scrap metal, Manchester: £1.8M;
• Hartel Ltd, business consultants and supplier of phone and video-conferencing facilities, Cheadle, Stoke-on-Trent: £1.7M;
• Harper’s restaurant chain of Yorkshire: £1.6M.

At the other extreme, Bengal Dynasty Restaurant, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, managed to get itself on the list even though its tax bill of £25,150 was only £150 over the lower limit. I can’t help but feel that a better adviser would have negotiated the tax below the £25,000 cut off: in order to avoid this damaging publication.

There were only two accountants this time: of which John Clive Andrews, trading as Andrews Accountancy Ltd of Robertsbridge in East Sussex had to pay £209,000.

As often happens in these situations, many of these businesses have now closed. The severe tax geared penalties charged in a tax investigation – where people are not well advised – are frequently enough to bring down an otherwise successful business.

What does this mean for me?
Anyone with tax problems to disclose, or who is under Enquiry by HM Revenue and Customs, risks being named and shamed. Getting early help from experienced Tax Investigation specialists should mean it’s wholly exceptional to end up with your details being published. Proper representation from top-quality Tax Enquiry professionals will nearly always bring the Tax Investigation to a quicker end; with significantly lower penalties; and no naming and shaming.

How can Lynam Tax Enquiry Professionals Help Me?
If you have any historic tax problems to disclose, or you’re under Investigation by HMRC, then you should get specialist help. Lynam Tax Enquiry Experts have combined experience of over 90 years – exclusively handling Tax Investigations and Tax Disclosures. We have settled around a thousand cases with HMRC. Not one of our clients has ever been named and shamed!

NB: For a free, private, no obligation consultation, call today:
Paul Lynam on 0845 643 9997
or Andrew Nutbrown on 07718 778710