Fair Tax Town

[binky]

for those who wish to see the large coporations that operate in the UK but pay buggerall tax the links below should be of some interest.

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-3408080/Crickhowell-Welsh-town-taking-Google-Amazon-Starbucks-takes-business-taxes-offshore.html

http://fairtaxtown.com/

 

[steptoe]

read about that the other day,

will try watch it on catchup,

 

[Essex1]

I watched it last night.  Basically it comes down to setting up a letterbox in The Netherlands and The Isle of Man and then creating a 'brand' that your UK business will have to pay to use.  The brand is owned by a IoM company and you just re-direct your profits via the NL.  I was really surprised how easy it is.

Considering it I must say....

 

[steptoe]

its really not that easy @Essex1

my friend qualifies as an IoM resident, [basically, you need visas and permits to work there, step one is to become an IoM worker, the next step is to become a Manx resident],

when he came back to the UK he still had his tax and everything else, including his wages, go through the IoM ,

that was fine until he wanted a mortgage, and needed some credit history,,,,,

it is a lot different if you have barrowloads of money, but I'd say the Caymans would be a better bet the way the Manx government are getting into bed with the UK at present,

the CI's are probably even better tbh, its still not that simple though, my mate has been there too, it was a nightmare trying to get his wages back to the UK without getting hammered in 'import' tax stuff.

 

[Essex1]

its really not that easy @Essex1

my friend qualifies as an IoM resident, [basically, you need visas and permits to work there, step one is to become an IoM worker, the next step is to become a Manx resident],

when he came back to the UK he still had his tax and everything else, including his wages, go through the IoM ,

that was fine until he wanted a mortgage, and needed some credit history,,,,,

it is a lot different if you have barrowloads of money, but I'd say the Caymans would be a better bet the way the Manx government are getting into bed with the UK at present,

the CI's are probably even better tbh, its still not that simple though, my mate has been there too, it was a nightmare trying to get his wages back to the UK without getting hammered in 'import' tax stuff.

We are talking corporation tax in this instance.  Not PAYE.  The UK based company will still pay their employees through the UK HMRC route and all tax declared and paid.  The loop holes in this thread are specifically aimed at reducing Corp tax.  Nothing else.

 

[steptoe]

ye, I'm talking a one man band Ltd company,

unless the turnover is fairly substantial, its a lot more in accountancy fees than is worth it,

may be good for maybe someone with a half a mil turnover [not a confirmed figure], which, i suppose, really isnt that much at all, but a lot more than mine,,,,  :|

I have misinformed in previous post,

I suppose wages isnt the correct terminology,

I dont really know how else to say it in English,

basically what he gets from his company,

 

[binky]

dividends is the phrase.

 

[steptoe]

thank you binky 

thats the word,

 

[Murdoch]

Off shore tax arrangements are nothing new.

My guess is that this has grown rapidly over the last 15 years as non EU based companies take the pxss.

I did ask my accountant about this last year and his advice is that I can't do it!

 

[Sidewinder]

Murdoch,

I find that hard to understand.

If a company can do it, and at least one does, as has been shown, then it is legal for ANY company to do it, else the company that is, "offshoring" is breaking the law.

Which it seems that they are not, so it is legal.

I suggest that you speak again to your accountant?

Else there is a dual level legal system in the UK, one for the likes of you & I, small businesses who cannot afford to take on the taxman, and the global corporates that the taxman is afraid of, which, they should not be.

If this is the case, then I would suggest HMRC are operating illegally.

 

[binky]

it's the different EU country tax arrangements that have led to this rediculous situation. A company can have a head office anywhere in the EU single market.

 

[Essex1]

Murdoch,

I find that hard to understand.

If a company can do it, and at least one does, as has been shown, then it is legal for ANY company to do it, else the company that is, "offshoring" is breaking the law.

Which it seems that they are not, so it is legal.

I suggest that you speak again to your accountant?

Else there is a dual level legal system in the UK, one for the likes of you & I, small businesses who cannot afford to take on the taxman, and the global corporates that the taxman is afraid of, which, they should not be.

If this is the case, then I would suggest HMRC are operating illegally.

Watch the program Paul. It is very interesting. HMRC do operate a two tier system. The super companies actually negotiate with HMRC on how much tax they pay. The likes of us just get stamped on. They know we cannot afford the £40k per day lawyers to fight our corner. 

 

[steptoe]

Anyone thinking of doing this,

BEWARE

the MANX GOVERNMENT have an agreement with UK HMRC to disclose the holdings of ANY UK citizen that HMRC request details of, 

Remember, although the IoM is NOT part of the UK, it is a Crown Dependency. 

And, not in the same way as CIs,  Gib, Falklands etc, it very much shadows the UK, it even has reciprocal agreements on Driving Licences etc, which it didn't have 10 years ago. 

 

[Sidewinder]

So in that case it seems that HMRC are a criminal organisation themselves?

 

[Andy™]

So in that case it seems that HMRC are a criminal organisation themselves?

along with every other public body

 

[Essex1]

So in that case it seems that HMRC are a criminal organisation themselves?

No. Tax avoidance is perfectly legal. The big companies pay a fee that they legally do not have to pay.  

All this his could be stopped by the UK government closing down the loop holes. Or just making tax law simpler. 

 

[Sidewinder]

Not quite my point Essex.

My point is that HMRC are willing to negotiate with some companies it seems, but not all, now that is illegal as they must treat all companies the same.

 

[Essex1]

Not quite my point Essex.

My point is that HMRC are willing to negotiate with some companies it seems, but not all, now that is illegal as they must treat all companies the same.

Well no they don't and they never would have the resources to do so. It is perfectly normal for HMRC to treat companies different. They will look at all sorts of things to decide how they will treat you such as previous records, payment history. Yes they may have a set of guidelines but they are just that. Guidelines. 

Also do not forget they are speaking with these companies to try and get MORE money from them that they are required to pay by law. 

 

[Murdoch]

Ultimately we the spending public candidate our bit and avoid buying anything from these organisations ......

 

[NozSpark]

Ultimately we the spending public candidate our bit and avoid buying anything from these organisations ......

The only problem is though is that so many of them are at it that they're hard to avoid