Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) Tax evader's collection confiscated

My, perhaps simplistic, understanding has always been that tax avoidance was reducing the amount of tax paid using legal loopholes (which HMRC at continuously trying to plug), tax evasion was reducing the amount of tax paid by deliberately mis-declaring income, assets etc.
The problem is that the avoidance schemes are often down to interpretation and it often takes an expensive test case in the courts to get a ruling on the legality. I believe the Gary Barlow/ Jimmy Carr cases were more about their public image and if they weren't "celebraties" they may not have apologised quite so quickly. I doubt either of them really understood the advice they were given by their expert advisors.
The morality of tax avoidance is another issue of course.

I find the best way to remember which is which is to use a Star Wars device. Darth Voidance isn't good, but the evil one is Darth Vader.

My accountants wording is as follows:

Tax minimisation is exploiting the known system, within the rules as agreed with HMRC: this is to be reccomended. As he is a former HMRC Inspector of Taxes it is something he is rather good at.

Tax avoidance is playing in the grey area, using the "if it isn't forbidden it is allowed" logic. This is only for the brave and the risks must be fully understood. He doesn't advise it, but will refer clients to a specialist firm in london if they want to go this route.

Tax evasion is a deliberate crime. He will report this.

Your clear and, in a positive way, simple reply meets my level of understanding and sense of justice.

I agree that the (tax)world is in reality a complex world, like Peter J explains in a very comprehensible way. Or one could assume, the tax world "creates" it's own reality...
But where ends tax law and it's possibly "legal cleverness", and where starts fair morals...

Hopefully the publication of the Grossi case is more than just an entertainment for the crowd to make them believe, something "upride happens".

In addition the share holding international companies should be treatet in the same way as the Grossi (family owned) company
Crooks and collaborators like a certain Mr. Claude Juncker should be punished very hard.

In our world the level of information is rising thanks the new media, but sometimes I get the impression, that the level of centralisation and secret deals in back rooms between industry, banking and governments is growing as well. That all does not help the folks to get propper and positive role models.

The problem HMRC faces with the big multinational corporations is that they can afford more expensive teams of so called tax advisors that means it becomes harder for them to challenge what would mostly be considered due for smaller companies.

We run a small business ...over the past 12 years HMRC have made it easier and easier to complete our annual return.
In the way of these things this has gone unrecognised ....but has helped thousands of small businesses to correctly fill in and send off their tax return.
We formed a new partnership this year and for the first time completed our return online. It was easy ...far easier than I had feared! So we'll done HMRC.
Deliberate tax evasion is wrong and should be called stealing.
But v big corporations can employ experts to skirt the system.
I once read that at the very top levels of tax issues even HMRC struggle with their own rules!

Are we all missing the key point here.

What were they doing to make that money and is there a gap in the market that needs filling right now ?

I will willingly pay the tax on the €50m.

I don't think, "they" will willingly pay. Obviously there is a chance that money changes character.

Agreed that HMRC online systems make it very easy for a small company to manage its tax affairs, but the rules themselves seem vastly more complex than they need to be. I'm growing more and more in favour of a simple flat rate direct tax, and a higher indirect tax rate.

True
Man Developed Land in Canary islands and places £8M profit in Swiss bank account.....English Tax Man finds out, after 2 year investigation, takes £5M and leaves developer with £3M

OUCH

Developer informs me it wasnt worth the 2 years of sleepless nights.