Tax avoidance

[Misty8498]

I'm wondering if anyone can help my soon to be ex husband was with an umbrella company and HMRC caught him committing tax avoidance. It was 40k in 2021 and now increased to 80k does this sound right ? Also I don't understand how it's a rounded figure.
he wants me to pay half out of the marital home but was hoping for some advice would really be appreciated.

another question if I'm expected to pay half can I have access to his login details for HMRC the last statement he received was in 2023 and he did say it's hard to get paperwork of HMRC and his would he will flag everything up by asking ...

The "returned" amount is the tax resulting from the original tax return filed at the time, ie a refund of tax in some years. The revised amount is what HMRC consider to be the correct tax bill for that year.
Those are huge differences between the two sets of figures and they also go back a long time which suggests that either HMRC are over-reaching in hope, or that they have raised an enquiry under one of the provisions which allow them to go back more than the usual period (because they think they can show deliberate fraud). That would be evasion, not avoidance.
Your exH should be taking very specialist advice, not just from a high street accountant.
The tax bill has nothing to do with you, but your marital family income will of course have dropped to the "corrected" levels over those years which will presumably feed into the calculations of assets. I'm not a lawyer though, so that bit's outside my ken.

It's nothing to do with you. So don't pay it it's personal tax, and down to him. Dint get involved and don't pay him a penny. HMRC can set up a personal payment plan over say 10years, or he can declare bankruptcy. Either way bog all to do with you.

Did he have an accountant? Was he working through an umbrella company all of this time?

I agree with @endofthelinefinally .

I feel like he could be trying to take advantage of your lack of knowledge and trying to scare you.

Oh dear that debt goes back a lot of years. I think this means HMRC think he was complicit. Was this all through an umbrella company? Did they also do the accounts and end of year filing? I presume this was all signed by your ex and he should have known he wasn’t paying enough at the time - I mean it’s pretty obvious from the returns isn’t it?

The company setting up these dodgy dealings are no doubt long gone. I do know people who were caught out by these companies at this time and know people who did have to repay the money.

Like a PP said, if you did benefit from this money at the time, as in it was family income, I personally think that morally you have some obligation to help to pay it back.

Whats you gut feeling? I’m getting the impression that you’d pay half rather than letting the legal advice take it all?

income tax class 4 NI contributions

From Return Revised
2012/13. -427.00. 17.902.00
2013/14. 1.80. 23,204.60
2014/15. -236.60. 12,406.80

2018/19. 12,700.57. 27.611.97
total ........ 12038.77. 81,125.37

would you need to see capital gains tax
and totals ?

To be honest I don't know how I feel he has got my back up saying I'm getting something for both

Ive contacted HMRC they have filled something in and asked me to send the sheet in for them to look at but this can take weeks and we have mediation the end of the month .

also the lady did say they don't send spread sheets as far as she knows ..

this wasn't attached to a letter from what i know . Would you say this was a spread sheet ?

Were you living well @Misty8498 ?
The tax bill of £27k in one year would imply an income close to £100k. Does that sound right?

Given the dates and amounts involved, it sounds like he went into one of the dodgy tax avoidance schemes either using foreign trusts or loans, whereby they pay him "loans" or "fiduciary settlements" instead of taxed wages with the scheme provider claiming they were tax free! People getting involved in those schemes knew they were dodgy as they were all over the internet. Most sensible people wouldn't touch them with a bargepole. I know HMRC are still going after the participants of those schemes heavily. There was no "misunderstanding" and no "innocent" contractors - they knew exactly what they were doing. These were people "earning" £50-£150k p.a. and thinking they were so clever not paying any tax! Stupid fools.

Because the owed funds tax goes back so far it would be quite easy for him to claim that these additional amounts that were in his bank account were paying for a property above and beyond what you could otherwise afford which unfortunately would then mean that they would be taken into account prior to agreeing the split of the property equity. I take it those funds are currently being held by the conveyancing solicitor till this is agreed.

Incorporated on
28 /10/2016 dissolved 2020
moved in together 2011

would I owe all that tax

also found pensions
1 worth 37,708.57
each year 3,585.01
2 might be worth 37300

bank statements for company
19/9 - 18/10 2018
23,113.27
Feb to march 2019 33 383.78
march to April
36,252.07 2019

will make you laugh may to June 2020
7.50

am I being silly pensions not added from mediation

nor company statements

please help

Don’t agree to pay a penny of this until you have take legal advice about whether you have joint liability, as it was when you were married and not without seeing the correspondence from HMRC about how much is owed. It could be the tax he should’ve paid at the time, plus a penalty, plus interest which both together could double the original amount he underpaid by,

Wasn't living well at all I worked full time

I just don't know what way to turn as he keeps telling me the interest will go up and up

I mean that is true, the interest will go up. It’s not interest to penalise him it’s because he didn’t pay the tax at the right time.

i think you need clear legal advice as to whether you’re liable. It doesn’t seem clear cut - I found a thread on money saving expert about it.

forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4736766/am-i-liable-for-husbands-hmrc-debt forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4736766/am-i-liable-for-husbands-hmrc-debt]]]]

The funds that were in the bank are gone

Oh the equity yes there's not much left

Are you sure it was an Umbrella company and not, in fact, your husband's own limited company?

Do a Companies House search with your ex's name

He did have a limited company

Yes look on there

OP I posted on the other thread. You should ask MN to delete the screenshot as it has an identifier on that anyone in HMRC with the relevant application can look up.

For what it is worth, the liability is on him not you. You need legal advice on whether HMRC or your ex can come after any assets you jointly own.

I'm not the brightest hence in this position..
I think I'm getting there with the help and advice from you guys .
can you remember what year ?
he was definitely having a good life