The Return of Taxpayers' Charter - HMRC's Attempt To Look Busy

Remember The Taxpayers' Charter?

Well HMRC, in an attempt to look busy, want your views on a revised version of it:

Open consultation

HMRC Charter

Published 24 February 2020

From:

HM Revenue & Customs

Summary

We are seeking views on our draft revisions to the HMRC Charter. The charter sets out the standard of behaviour and values that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) aspires to when interacting with customers – what you can expect from us and what we can expect from you.

This consultation closes at
11:45pm on 15 May 2020

Consultation description

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) deals with the tax and payments affairs of almost every business and individual in the UK. HMRC’s Charter sets out the relationship HMRC wants with its customers and what customers can expect from us.
The HMRC Charter is a legal requirement under the Finance Act 2009. The legislation states that the Charter ‘must include standards of behaviour and values to which Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs will aspire when dealing with people in the exercise of their functions’.
HMRC is committed to improving its customer experience and proposes that HMRC’s Charter is used to define the service and standard of behaviour that customers should expect when interacting with us. It is due to come into effect by the summer of 2020.
You can read the current HMRC Charter.

Ways to respond

These questions may help you structure your feedback, but you can provide general comments or limit your feedback to particular areas:

• do you think the draft charter sets the right standards for HMRC’s service to customers (Part 1)?
• to what extent do you feel the draft charter sets out the areas that are most important to customers when interacting with HMRC?
• how you would like to see HMRC measure and monitor how it is performing against the charter, including how we can best listen to feedback and make improvements (Part 2)?

Documents

Consultation: HMRC Charter

HTML

Ways to respond

Email to:

HMRC.Charter@hmrc.gov.uk

Write to:

HMRC Charter Team,
Customer Insight and Design Directorate,
9th Floor, 10 South Colonnade, Canary Wharf,
London E14 5AB

Tax does have to be taxing.

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HMRC's "Secret" Tax Investigation Unit

HMRC has created a secretive unit to investigate the use of family investment companies by the very wealthy to avoid inheritance tax, putting family offices with an estimated $1tn-plus in assets in its sights.

HMRC set up the team last April to target the issue of FICs. The creation of the new unit, which was not previously disclosed, comes amid growing concern about inequality and the perception that the wealthy avoid taxes by using sophisticated legal instruments.

HMRC only revealed the existence of the new investigations unit, which sits inside its Wealthy and Mid-sized Compliance Directorate, only after a freedom of information request was filed by Pinsent Masons’ public relations company. 

In a statement to the FT, HMRC said:

"The Family Investment Company team was established . . . in April 2019 to look at FICs and do a quantitative and qualitative review into any tax risks associated with them with a focus on inheritance tax implications. The team’s work is exploratory at this stage and as such, we would not like to share any more details.” 

Not so "secret" now!


Tax does have to be taxing.

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Atalian Servest Acquires Another HMRC Contract

Atalian Servest has been awarded its fourth contract with HMRC in less than 18 months.

The global service provider has been providing cleaning, catering and security at HMRC’s Newcastle office since May 2018.

The latest deal adds another 14 sites to the company’s existing partnership with HMRC.

Services to the new sites will include cleaning, catering, reception, waste management, grounds maintenance, pest control, portering and mail. The company will deploy approximately 250 staff at the additional sites.


Daniel Dickson, CEO of Atalian Servest UK & Ireland, is quoted by FMJ:  

“The opportunity to provide services for even more HMRC sites demonstrates the strength of the partnership we are building. HMRC is on a journey to transform the way the organisation and its people work. With our excellent track record in corporate services and contract innovation, Atalian Servest is perfectly positioned to help the organisation achieve these bold objectives.”

Tax does have to be taxing.

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Having a Solar Protect Tax Investigation Insurance policy at your disposal means that should you be one of the many 1000's of businesses or individuals that are selected by HMRC each year to look into your tax affairs your own accountant (your tax return agent) can get on and defend you robustly.

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HMRC Out of Step With Credit Card Ban

HMRC has been accused of being ‘out of step’ with other large commercial organisations over its ban on the use of credit cards by individuals to pay their tax bills, leaving some unable to pay and facing penalties

This decision taken two years ago gives rise to particularly acute problems at this time of the year, as self assessment taxpayers normally have to pay around half their tax bill for the year by 31 January, says UHY Hacker Young.

Clive Gawthorpe, partner at UHY Hacker Young, said:

‘HMRC wants to be more customer focused so refusing to accept credit cards just seems remarkably unhelpful and anachronistic. The rule can lead to big financial penalties for taxpayers who are already struggling.

With so many other organisations like budget airlines now accepting credit cards without any charges it does make this policy from HMRC look out of step.’

Such a pity he used the word "customer"!

Tax does have to be taxing.

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Having a Solar Protect Tax Investigation Insurance policy at your disposal means that should you be one of the many 1000's of businesses or individuals that are selected by HMRC each year to look into your tax affairs your own accountant (your tax return agent) can get on and defend you robustly.

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Sunak's Light IR35 Touch

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has bowed to industry pressure over IR35 tax changes by promising enforcement will not be “heavy-handed”.

He is quoted by CityAM:

“I’ve spent time with HMRC to ensure they are not going to be at all heavy handed for the first year to give people time to adjust as well which I think is an appropriate and fair thing to do."

No worries then!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Tax Investigation Insurance

Having a Solar Protect Tax Investigation Insurance policy at your disposal means that should you be one of the many 1000's of businesses or individuals that are selected by HMRC each year to look into your tax affairs your own accountant (your tax return agent) can get on and defend you robustly.

You have the peace of mind knowing that your accountant's (your tax return agent) fees will be paid by the insurance without any Excess for you to find.

Please click here for details.


HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Harra Lives In The Clouds

Jim Harra has published his assessment summary of HMRC's "Securing Our Technical Future" programme, backing up an earlier conclusion by the department’s former accounting office Sir Jonathan Thompson that the programme will provide value for money and is deliverable.

The programme involves migrating from existing data centres to cloud based hosting or the Crown Hosting service, along with a review of any vulnerabilities in the legacy IT estate of more than 600 services.

Harra says this is costly to run and lacks agility, and that the new programme will enable HMRC to generate more cost-effective arrangements with suppliers and give itself a more resilient and flexible infrastructure.

He added that there is no requirement for any legislative or regulatory change to make it happen, and that the programme takes in effective controls to protect data from customers and other government departments.

The assessment acknowledges that there will be challenges but says the programme has already passed several milestones successfully, including an independent assurance review and HM Treasury approval of the business case. Further Treasury approvals are planned as the programme progresses.

Harra also says that if any of the main factors change he will produce a revised summary.

Sorted!

Tax does have to be taxing.

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Having a Solar Protect Tax Investigation Insurance policy at your disposal means that should you be one of the many 1000's of businesses or individuals that are selected by HMRC each year to look into your tax affairs your own accountant (your tax return agent) can get on and defend you robustly.

You have the peace of mind knowing that your accountants (your tax return agent) fees will be paid by the insurance without any Excess for you to find.

Please click here for details.


HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"