In HMRC v S&L Barnes Ltd [2024] UKUT 262 (TCC) (28 August) the Upper Tribunal (UT) overturned the decision of the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) and allowed HMRC’s appeal holding that the intermediaries legislation (IR35) applied to a personal service company which supplied the services of former international Stuart Barnes (B) to Sky TV as a rugby co-commentator and pundit.
The company provided the services of B to a range of media organisations including The Times and the Sunday Times and several broadcasters. The appeal concerned two contracts for the period 2013 to 2019 under which the company supplied the services of B to Sky TV. The income from the contracts represented approximately 60% of the income of the company the remainder consisting mainly of income from newspaper columns.
The FTT had applied the three-stage test in Ready Mixed Concrete (South East) Ltd v Minister of Pensions and National...
