Tax News

Tax news highlights: October 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling discuss the consultation response and draft legislation for the economic crime levy, the High Court decision in Almacantar on the application of estoppel by convention in the context of a notice of claim under a tax indemnity, and the First-tier Tribunal decisions in Shinelock on the interaction between the tax rules and net accounting and Marlborough rejecting a rather wide interpretation of the Supreme Court decision in Rangers argued for by HMRC. Zoe and Tanja also share some thoughts sparked by the press coverage of the Pandora Papers and briefly address the announcement that 136 out of the 140 member countries of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS have reached agreement on international tax reform.

Tax new highlights: September 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling discuss HMRC’s draft guidance in relation to the large business notification of uncertain tax treatment for which draft legislation was published on “L-Day”, and four recent cases:

• the Court of Appeal’s decision in Ingenious Games (a sequel to the Ingenious Films litigation);
• the Court of Session’s decision in the employment-related securities case Vermilion;
• the Upper Tribunal’s decision in Centrica on investment management expenses; and 
• the First-tier Tribunal’s decision in the latest unallowable purpose case, Kwik-Fit.

They also briefly mention the Upper Tribunal’s decision in KSM Henryk Zeman where public law arguments, normally the purview of judicial review, were permitted to be raised in a VAT appeal.

Tax News Highlights: August 2021

In this podcast, Nele Dhondt and Tanja Velling discuss the proposal for a new UK subsidy control regime (and its impact on tax) as well as the EU General Court’s decision in the Nike and Converse State aid case. The podcast also covers key points around the draft legislation for the large business notification of uncertain tax treatment published on 20 July, better known as “L-day”, and the latest news on the modernisation of stamp taxes on shares, and it briefly mentions the Supreme Court’s judgment in Tinkler, applying the doctrine of estoppel by convention to prevent the taxpayer from denying that a notice of enquiry had been validly issued.

Tax news highlights: July 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling discuss the First-tier Tribunal decision in West Burton Property Limited v HMRC concerning deferred revenue expenditure and the interaction between the accounting and tax computation rules. They also discuss the Supreme Court decision in the Haworth judicial review proceedings which confirms that the pre-conditions for the issuance of a follower notice should be interpreted restrictively.

The podcast also covers the latest developments on the OECD’s international tax reform project, including a statement published on 1 July 2021 on an agreement reached by the majority of the members of the Inclusive Framework and its subsequent endorsement by the G20 Finance Ministers, and it touches on the UK’s roadmap for financial services post-Brexit.

Tax news highlights: June 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling discuss the Supreme Court decisions in Hurstwood Properties on the application of the Ramsay principle to business rates legislation and Tooth on discovery assessments, clarifying the meaning of “deliberate error” and dismissing the concept of staleness. They also consider two cases concerning tax covenant and warranty claims, Dodika before the Court of Appeal and TP Icap Ltd before the High Court, and judicial review proceedings in Heathrow Airport in respect of the withdrawal of an extra-statutory concession in respect of tax-free shopping.

The podcast also provides an update on potentially settled points and open issues following the G7 agreement in respect of the OECD’s international tax reform project, and it covers the European Commission’s plan to make EU business taxation fit for the 21st century, highlighting the planned proposals for BEFIT, DEBRA and a WTO-compliant digital levy.

Tax News Highlights - May 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling provide an update on the progress of Finance Bill 2021, noting some of the Government amendments made during the Committee Stage.

They also discuss two First-tier Tribunal and one High Court decisions. The First-tier Tribunal decisions are those in Euromoney on the application of the purpose test in section 137 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 to prevent rollover treatment on a share-for-share exchange and in Aozora on the interaction between the UK’s rules on unilateral relief from double taxation and the Limitation on Benefits article in the US/UK tax treaty. The High Court decision concerns the Danish tax authority SKAT’s attempt to reclaim Danish withholding tax refunds.

The podcast further covers certain international tax topics. Zoe and Tanja consider the impact of the Biden/Harris administration’s tax reform proposals on the OECD’s international tax reform project, the adoption of a new Article 12B (Income from Automated Digital Services) for the UN’s Model Tax Treaty and the consultation on proposed changes to the commentary on Article 9 (Associated enterprises) of the OECD’s Model Tax Treaty.

Tax news highlights: April 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling provide an overview of the UK Government’s announcements made on Tax Day, 23 March 2021, highlighting three measures that were shelved and three measures on which further information will be published in due course.
 
Five consultations are discussed in more detail: the call for evidence on the tax administration framework to support a 21st century tax system, the second consultation on the notification of uncertain tax treatment by large businesses, the consultation on options for updating transfer pricing documentation requirements, the consultation on raising standards in the tax advice market which focusses on the introduction of compulsory professional indemnity insurance for tax advisers, and the consultation on the reform of the taxation of securitisation companies.
 
The podcast covers the decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Cases C-459/19 Wellcome Trust, considering whether a taxable person is “acting as such” for the purposes of Article 44 of the Principal VAT Directive when receiving supplies for the purposes of its non-economic business activities, and C-812/19 Danske Bank on the VAT treatment of supplies between a VAT-grouped head office and its non-VAT-grouped foreign branch. Zoe and Tanja also briefly touch on DAC7.

Tax News Highlights - March 2021

In this podcast, Zoe Andrews and Tanja Velling discuss highlights from the UK Budget, including the planned increase of the headline corporation tax rate, the proposed review of tax administration practices, and the introduction of a more generous loss carry-back and enhanced capital allowances.

The podcast provides an update on certain OECD and EU developments, including on the International Compliance Assurance Programme and public country-by-country reporting. It discusses European Commission consultations on business taxation for the 21st century, on safeguarding the rights of taxpayers engaged in cross-border activities and on improvements to the gathering and exchange of information on crypto-assets and e-money.

Finally, Zoe and Tanja consider four recent cases, the First-Tier Tribunal decisions in HFFX and Odey Asset Management on the tax treatment of funds reallocated from the corporate member of a partnership to the individual members, and Imprimatur Capital Holdings on input VAT recovery, and the Court of Appeal decision in Eastern Power Networks, addressing the extent to which the First-tier Tribunal should use its discretion to decide substantive tax points in a procedural application.