Q. Why are AegisTax different from normal Tax advisors?
A. AegisTax are resolution advisers. We specialise in negotiating with HMRC and other revenue authorities on any aspect of your tax affairs that is being challenged (e.g. you need help with a Tax Investigation) or that you wish to challenge (e.g. you need to know how to recover overpaid tax). We use ex-Revenue consultants to communicate effectively with the authorities and the structure we have in place also protects your confidentiality.
Q. What if I am worried there is something wrong with my tax affairs?
A. Aegistax believe you should have the right to seek advice on this matter without the risk of your advisor reporting anything wrong to HMRC – without telling you they have to! We have always believed such reporting to be unfair and as a result we have created a structure to protect you from having your identity disclosed while you take advice.
Q. What is the New Disclosure Opportunity?
A. The New Disclosure Opportunity or NDO is a new initiative announced by HMRC in July 2009 aimed at encouraging the disclosure of income from offshore bank accounts. Please visit our HMRC New Disclosure Opportunity (NDO) page for more detailed information.
Q. When should I consider Legal rather than Tax advice?
A. Quite simply if your unpaid tax in the UK exceeds £25,000 and you want to disclose the debt to HMRC. HMRC are selective with their prosecution policy and will provide no guarantees as to whether a disclosure will be dealt with using civil procedures. As there is only one chance to have HMRC offer to act on a Civil Code of Practice we always err on the side of caution - once HMRC have decided to prosecute then the matter will usually go to Court. AegisTax, with its expert legal partners, have always avoided its clients being prosecuted, successfully resolving issues on a civil basis on their behalf.
Q. What is a Civil Code of Practice?
A. A Civil Code of Practice is a procedure whereby HMRC will not prosecute you for not paying your tax and will not confiscate your assets. You will be asked to correct your tax returns over the last 6 years or for as long as the problems existed but no longer than 20 years. You are asked to do this using experienced advisors in this area of Tax Resolution. The conclusions are adopted in a report that you authorise as your disclosure. If you sign the report knowing it is wrong HMRC reserve the right to prosecute you for making an incorrect disclosure.
Q. Can I use my current advisor to prepare a Disclosure Report?
A. Surprisingly HMRC have no objection to your doing this. They seem to ignore the fact that having someone independent review your tax affairs is probably the best way of establishing the correct position . HMRC probably view dealing with an advisor who is inexperienced in tax resolution as a benefit to them provided the report is submitted within the 6 months they allow. You may wish to ask your advisor: what experience he has; how many cases he has dealt with; what was the average period it took from start to finish; what penalty mitigation did he agree. The choice of advisor is a big decision because once the procedure is started your financial future is in that person’s hands. Remember that a good general practitioner will always refer a serious issue to a specialist - just as true in tax resolution as it is in medicine.
Q. What Costs are involved?
A. Our normal method of billing is on an hourly basis . In addition travel costs and time are charged. Before we are appointed we will send you a copy of our terms of engagement to consider and agree. Our hourly rates vary between £125 and £300 depending on the experience of the consultant and complexity of the problem. In some circumstances we offer a contingency fee based on the savings we make for you. This is complex and needs to be discussed and agreed to suit the particular situation. The costs are not tax deductible but because we are based outside the EU we do not charge VAT if we are billing outside Switzerland.
Q . What do I do next?
A. Whatever the situation, take advice now. We would encourage you to take as many opinions as you wish but certainly more than just one. If you ask us, we will provide you with a no risk confidential assessment of your problem and how to deal with it. Once you have compared the advice you get let us know what you have decided.
