New criminal offence for tax evaders

Plans to introduce a new strict liability criminal offence for individuals who hide their money offshore are to be published for consultation by the Government.

Under the plans, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) would no longer need to prove that individuals who have undeclared income offshore intended to evade tax, in order for a criminal conviction to be handed down.

At present, even when someone fails to declare offshore income, HMRC still has to demonstrate that the individual intended to evade tax. This change will mean HMRC only has to demonstrate the income was taxable and undeclared, and as a result it will be easier to secure successful prosecutions of offshore tax evaders.

As well as introducing the new criminal offence, the Government will consult on a range of options building on the existing penalties faced by those hiding their money in offshore accounts – currently up to 200% of the tax owed – to make sure they act as a clear and effective deterrent.

The consultation will look at whether the existing penalty limit should be raised further, how penalties could be increased if individuals try to move money around in a bid to avoid detection and extending the penalty regime to include inheritance tax.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v2.0.

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