George Osborne finally gets tough on tax avoidance!

[MLAR]

If you don't know the difference between evasion and avoidance then you shouldn't be commenting on this topic.

 

I do know the difference.

 

Do I have your permission to stay on the thread, oh great one?

[Bob Arctor]

There is no magic "supposed to" value.

If they can avoid most of their tax, then what's left is the "supposed to" number, and the OP is indeed saying that they should pay more.

 

And yet if it were legal, it would be legal (as described it isn't).

 

The corporation tax rate is 20%. If a company makes £100 million profit in the UK it is supposed to pay £20 million in tax, don't you think?

[Justin Smith]

Look buddy, whether large company or average joe wage slave, nobody pays more than they have to. If the big companies can get away with paying peanuts, then they will. It's not your fight. Don't hate the players.

 

With all due respect, "Buddy", it is my fight, and in fact every single persons fight. Every pound that tax avoiders get out of paying is a pound that all the rest of us tax payers have to pay, directly. Or, on the other hand, one pound less in to pay for the NHS, the police, the education system, the army etc etc etc.

[Bob Arctor]

With all due respect, "Buddy", it is my fight, and in fact every single persons fight. Every pound that tax avoiders get out of paying is a pound that all the rest of us tax payers have to pay, directly. Or, on the other hand, one pound less in to pay for the NHS, the police, the education system, the army etc etc etc.

 

Exactly. Everything has to be paid for, it's just that some people think it should only be other people's responsibility. Anyone who doubts the importance of all of us paying enough tax should take a look at Greece. Osborne should be doing all he can to close the loopholes, seems he's too busy taking money off people at the bottom.

[Anna B]

Is it? By whom, it is certainly not considered to be a haven by any country I know of? Can you point me towards any evidence of this (UK being a tax haven)?

 

If you think Osborn is only going after the little guys, why is there so much complaint about the HMRC having their funding cut? The problem is, the HMRC do not actively target many people, its a computer system that works out if they need to look into your tax. Also the likelihood of you getting your tax wrong, especially your self assessment, is pretty high due to the complexity of the forms etc. Big business have teams of people to do this and so are very well versed at getting it right first time.

 

Start with these:

 

'UK is tax haven for multinationals'

BBC News

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-27187398

 

''UK is biggest tax haven in EU says global tax expert'

RT

http://www.rt.com/uk/268072-tax-avoidance-city-london

 

'Special Report - Britain's home-grown tax haven'

Reuters

UK.reuters.com/uk-britain-tax-nondoms-specialreport-idUKKBN0O71

[Alan Else]

Look buddy, whether large company or average joe wage slave, nobody pays more than they have to. If the big companies can get away with paying peanuts, then they will. It's not your fight. Don't hate the players.

 

Think that you're a tad wrong there, those on P.A.Y.E have no option. of course it's our fight, if big corporates can and do get away with paying little or no tax then it is everyone else's business, the system needs these loopholes closing they're costing the country £Billions

 

---------- Post added 09-12-2015 at 21:57 ----------

 

Exactly. Everything has to be paid for, it's just that some people think it should only be other people's responsibility. Anyone who doubts the importance of all of us paying enough tax should take a look at Greece. Osborne should be doing all he can to close the loopholes, seems he's too busy taking money off people at the bottom.

Very well said.

[taxman]

If you don't know the difference between evasion and avoidance then you shouldn't be commenting on this topic.

 

Says someone who still thinks an ISA is tax avoidance despite repeatedly being given chapter and verse from govt and policy to say that it isn't.

[Cyclone]

Being told how the word was redefined from it's previous meaning yes. I'm not going to accept a redefinition.

ISAs allow you to earn interest and pay no tax, compared to normal interest earned where you pay tax. It's quite clearly a way to avoid paying tax on interest.

That's what it's for, it's why it exists.

There are other ways, many other ways, even for those on PAYE, for example salary sacrifice towards child care vouchers, or in fact most salary sacrifice schemes. Even the "buy a bike" scheme avoids the tax you would have paid if you'd earned the money and then bought a bike.

 

Businesses have many more options open to them, and they have accountants seeking new and exciting ways to use the schemes that exist to save even more tax. It's all avoidance. Defined by the fact that it's not illegal, but tax is not paid.

 

---------- Post added 10-12-2015 at 09:21 ----------

 

Think that you're a tad wrong there, those on P.A.Y.E have no option. of course it's our fight, if big corporates can and do get away with paying little or no tax then it is everyone else's business, the system needs these loopholes closing they're costing the country £Billions

 

Not true.

 

http://www.childcarevouchers.co.uk/parents/parent-support/parent-faqs/#.VmlD2LiyNBc

 

See point 2 here.

 

Obviously this particular scheme is only good for parents who want to use childcare, but it's an example of how regular PAYE earners can reduce the tax they pay.

 

And this one is open to anyone who wants to buy a bike and who's employer is taking part.

 

http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/employers/employer-updates/cyclescheme-hmrc-vat-update-faqs

 

Both parties save here, the employee up to 42%... that's a lot of tax saved!

Edited December 10, 2015 by Cyclone

[RonJeremy]

Says someone who still thinks an ISA is tax avoidance despite repeatedly being given chapter and verse from govt and policy to say that it isn't.

 

This again is because the whole of Britain is "dumbing down". The redefinition of avoidance is because some people are too thick to grasp the difference between avoidance and evasion.

 

Perhaps they should just call it avoision and be done with it.

[Alan Else]

Its not ripping off anybody. Its taking advantage of legal tax loopholes . Big difference.

The big difference is the word BIG, the system was set up by BIG people at the top of the money ladder to make sure jo public paid his share whilst those at the top could get away without paying a penny.

You seem not worried by the big hitters get away with £Billions.

 

---------- Post added 10-12-2015 at 10:02 ----------

 

Businesses have many more options open to them, and they have accountants seeking new and exciting ways to use the schemes that exist to save even more tax. It's all avoidance. Defined by the fact that it's not illegal, but tax is not paid.

So if you know of these options how come the experts in the IR haven't informed the government who then should do something about it?

 

---------- Post added 10-12-2015 at 10:04 ----------

 

Both parties save here, the employee up to 42%... that's a lot of tax saved!

So why isn't anything being done about it.

 

---------- Post added 10-12-2015 at 10:04 ----------

 

Exactly. Everything has to be paid for, it's just that some people think it should only be other people's responsibility. Anyone who doubts the importance of all of us paying enough tax should take a look at Greece. Osborne should be doing all he can to close the loopholes, seems he's too busy taking money off people at the bottom.

 

Agree 101%.

 

---------- Post added 10-12-2015 at 10:19 ----------

 

Says someone who still thinks an ISA is tax avoidance despite repeatedly being given chapter and verse from govt and policy to say that it isn't.

What Cyclone conveniently omits is that you only save a few pounds if any on ISAS due to the limitations on the amount that you can have or is he saying rich people can have more because they're rich?