Tougher consequences for the promoters of tax avoidance

In our response we tell HMRC that when considering a director disqualification, they need to take into account the problem of young, inexperienced, or otherwise vulnerable individuals being recruited as nominee or stooge directors.

Nominee or stooge directors can be used by tax non-compliant umbrella companies to disguise true ownership. People who have been recruited as directors for a fee and who aren’t really the ones in charge but are just desperate for the money, could find themselves caught up in this, with the problem being that disqualification has wide ramifications that can seriously impact on their lives.

We say it is vital that HMRC recognise the issue and have a strong internal governance structure in place to ensure that the stooge or nominee directors are weeded out where it is clear there is little or no understanding or involvement in day-to-day operations - before disqualification action is initiated.

The consultation document can be found here

Our response can be found here