HMRC names barrister in tax avoidance list for first time
In an unprecedented move, HMRC has added a practising barrister, identified as the ‘designer’ of a tax avoidance scheme, to its list of tax avoidance promoters.
Tax barrister Setu Kamal, with 20 years of experience, stands accused of designing four tax avoidance schemes and producing the contract templates crucial to their operation.
Those schemes were MLG Pay Limited, The Umbrella Agency Limited, Veqta Ltd, and Vision HR Solutions Ltd, which HMRC said typically promised workers they could keep more of their pay by avoiding income tax and national insurance contributions.
Kamal was practising from Old Square Tax Chambers from 2005 till 2024 and is now a sole practitioner.
As of 4 September, HMRC has published details of more than 170 tax avoidance schemes and named more than 170 promoters; however, the move today sees a barrister added for the first time.
Jonathan Smith, HMRC’s director of counter avoidance, said: “Legal professionals have a position of trust and responsibility; they shouldn’t be involved in creating schemes that purport to let people avoid paying tax that funds our vital public services.”
“We want to support those who have used these schemes to exit them and bring their tax position up-to-date. I urge them to contact us as soon as possible so they can settle their affairs,” he added.
HMRC said this naming shows it is not just targeting companies, but is also after those who are behind them, “no matter their status”.
Earlier this year, the agency stated that the true scale of tax evasion is likely far higher than it estimates, after data showed that the UK tax gap was £5.5bn in the 2022-23 financial year, which was considerably lower than in similar economies.
The Labour government is cracking down on tax evasion, as Rachel Reeves revealed in her Spring Statement, her plans to raise over £1bn in additional gross tax revenue by targeting ‘evaders’.
Kamal was contacted for a comment on the matter.