Social media: Everything that you put out there on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and any other social networking site. Even more peripheral information can help HMRC discover undeclared income and get the Treasury's money back.
The UK's HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will "observe, monitor, record and retain internet data" which is available to everyone, including blogs and social networking sites where no privacy settings have been applied, it has specifically confirmed in an update to its guidance on criminal investigations for tax offences.
HMRC may observe, monitor, record and retain Internet data which is available to anyone. This is known as 'open source' material and includes news report Internet sites, Companies House and Land Registry records, blogs and social networking sites where no privacy settings have been applied.
Does HMRC check bank accounts? Yes, your pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) records and the information you supply on your self-assessment tax return can be used by HMRC to determine how much you earn.
HMRC Facebook bill larger than corporate tax earnings
What triggers an HMRC investigation?
someone alerting HMRC to unusual activity in your accounts. noticeable inconsistencies between tax returns (e.g, a big fall in income from one year to the next) frequently filing tax returns late. your accounts not matching the industry norms.
If anything is significantly different, for example, your costs have increased considerably or your earnings have plummeted, which lowers your Income Tax liability, it creates a red flag, which can trigger an HMRC investigation.
Transaction monitoring records information about you when you are using HMRC and shared HMRC services. We collect personal data about: the computers, phones or devices you use. the internet connections you use.
The Connect system also looks at social media posts, bank and credit card records, DVLA records, social media posts, and most concerningly of all, HMRC will sweep your browsing history and email records too.
If you're not employed, do not get a pension or do not complete Self Assessment, your bank or building society will tell HMRC how much interest you received at the end of the year. HMRC will tell you if you need to pay tax and how to pay it.
On average, tax audits can be expected every five years or so, while only a few per cent of income tax and corporation tax returns are investigated each year. But the frequency of tax audits and the likelihood of in-depth tax investigations increases if HMRC suspects that tax is being underpaid.
How to tell if HMRC is investigating you. If HMRC is investigating you formally, you will receive a letter explaining that they have started an official investigation and asking for additional information. You will not typically be notified when HMRC is looking into your tax affairs prior to this.
HMRC can obtain account data from PayPal – the online payment company owned by eBay – from smartphone app stores run by Apple and Google, and from holiday comparison websites and a host of other online retailers.
UK Local Authorities (local government) are looking at people's social media accounts, such as Facebook, as part of their intelligence gathering and investigation tactics in areas such as council tax payments, children's services, benefits and monitoring protests and demonstrations.
Does Facebook share information with the government?
The social network produced some user data in 88 percent of requests from U.S. federal authorities. The United States account for the largest share of Facebook user data requests worldwide.
Yes. HMRC carries out compliance checks on a certain number of returns each year to check their accuracy. Some checks will be completely random, whilst others will be made on reasons of suspicion.
There are many ways HMRC can find out about undeclared income. First of all, they use sophisticated software called Connect. This system is designed to analyse large amounts of data and pick up any inconsistencies that could point to tax evasion. From there, HMRC can launch an investigation.
They will never visit you at your home or place of work. You can either: pay them what you owe us, if you are able to — once your payment has been cleared the agency will send it to us to credit to your HMRC account.
Our calls are recorded. If you are looking to request a copy of that recording you can contact our Income Tax Team they will be able to advise you of that process.
What is the penalty for not declaring income in the UK?
Income tax evasion penalties – summary conviction is 6 months in jail or a fine up to £5,000. The maximum penalty for income tax evasion in the UK is seven years in prison or an unlimited fine. Evasion of VAT – in the magistrate's court, the maximum sentence is 6 months in jail or a fine of up to £20,000.
HMRC does not shy away from carrying out investigations covertly to highlight tax fraud. HMRC off Members of their Enforcement and Compliance Taskforce have broad powers to expose tax evasion, including entering business premises disguised or simply posing as customers.
If you receive an assessment from HMRC, and it understates your tax liability, you can also face a penalty if you do not tell HMRC. This is known as an 'inaccuracy penalty'. It is a tax-based penalty, which means it is calculated using the amount of tax you potentially did not pay because of the error.
