The National Audit Report (NAO) has published a report on how HMRC has managed the collection of tax debt through the pandemic – in particular, whether it has adapted sufficiently to the changing nature and scale of that debt and the wider circumstances that affect taxpayers’ ability to repay tax, and whether it is likely to have sufficient capacity in the future.
Key findings on HMRC’s capacity to manage debt include:
To address the increase in demand for its services, the report recommends that HMRC should:
Given that HMRC is restricted in its ability to scale up capacity in the short term, the report recommends developing capability in other ways, including:
Commenting on the report, Dawn Register, Head of Tax Dispute Resolution at BDO, said: ‘With many Covid-19 support measures now withdrawn, there is likely to be a strong emphasis on collecting unpaid tax regardless of whether HMRC remains understaffed. A lack of resources could even result in more punitive action for non-compliance given that HMRC will be under pressure to resolve situations quickly.
‘The Government is investing £100m into HMRC to build up its Taxpayer Protection Taskforce to go after an estimated £5.2bn in pandemic support fraud but the current tax debt of £42bn dwarfs this figure, and it must be worth investing more in HMRC’s debt management service to collect that. In my experience, better service from HMRC’s debt team helps struggling businesses and individuals pay back more and faster, so it has to be a good investment for the Government in the long run.’
The National Audit Report (NAO) has published a report on how HMRC has managed the collection of tax debt through the pandemic – in particular, whether it has adapted sufficiently to the changing nature and scale of that debt and the wider circumstances that affect taxpayers’ ability to repay tax, and whether it is likely to have sufficient capacity in the future.
Key findings on HMRC’s capacity to manage debt include:
To address the increase in demand for its services, the report recommends that HMRC should:
Given that HMRC is restricted in its ability to scale up capacity in the short term, the report recommends developing capability in other ways, including:
Commenting on the report, Dawn Register, Head of Tax Dispute Resolution at BDO, said: ‘With many Covid-19 support measures now withdrawn, there is likely to be a strong emphasis on collecting unpaid tax regardless of whether HMRC remains understaffed. A lack of resources could even result in more punitive action for non-compliance given that HMRC will be under pressure to resolve situations quickly.
‘The Government is investing £100m into HMRC to build up its Taxpayer Protection Taskforce to go after an estimated £5.2bn in pandemic support fraud but the current tax debt of £42bn dwarfs this figure, and it must be worth investing more in HMRC’s debt management service to collect that. In my experience, better service from HMRC’s debt team helps struggling businesses and individuals pay back more and faster, so it has to be a good investment for the Government in the long run.’