Background

Background

Crabb was the sole director of Courtside Recycling Ltd (Courtside). From 2014 to 2018, Crabb instructed Courtside's accountants to file VAT returns but only provided bank statements for one of the Company's three bank accounts. As a result, the VAT assessments significantly understated Courtside's true VAT liabilities for this period.

Following its own investigation and using transaction information gathered from Courtside's other bank accounts, HMRC issued amended VAT assessments. Courtside was unable to pay its VAT liabilities.

In the recent case of Re JD Group Ltd in liquidation; Bhatia v Purkiss (as liquidator of JD Group Ltd) a company director appealed a decision that he was liable for VAT fraud.

Background

Mr Bhatia was the sole director of a company trading in mobile phones. He was sent a HMRC notice explaining the risks of mobile phone trading and liability for involvement in VAT fraud.

Nicola Sharp of Rahman Ravelli outlines a case where an individual’s knowledge of a tax evasion scheme was key

A cellphone company director lost his bid to challenge a £1.7 million-plus award against him for VAT fraud when the High Court said he had actual knowledge of his firm's tax evasion scheme.

In Bhatia v Purkiss [2023] EWHC 775, the High Court rejected an appeal from Deepak Bhatia, the company director of the now-defunct phone company JD Group Ltd, against a ruling from the Insolvency and Companies Court (ICC).

Where a commercial property is sold by a receiver or insolvency practitioner (IP), VAT must be charged on the sale if the owner had exercised and properly notified an option to tax (OTT) in respect of the property. The IP acting on behalf of the seller needs to establish whether an OTT has been made and notified so that VAT is charged , if needed.  This can be difficult if company records are in disarray, directors of the insolvent company are non-cooperative and/or the IP or receiver has limited knowledge of the property and company.

Nicola Sharp considers the recent appeal decision in Tradition Financial Services Ltd vBilta (UK) Ltd [2023] EWCA Civ, and the ways in which it affects the definition of fraudulent trading.

As we start the new year, we take a look back at some of our highlights from 2022, and offer our view for 2023.

The corporate insolvency statistics for Q2 2022 paint a worrying picture for UK businesses. With inflation at a 40-year high, fuelled by soaring gas and electricity bills, food prices and wage increases, the cost of living crisis is taking hold across the economy.

１ 「経済の着実な安定化のための一括的政策措置の発布に関する 通知」 

国務院は、2022年5月31日に「経済の着実な安定化のための一括 的政策措置の発布に関する通知」を発表し、財政政策、貨幣金融政 策、投資安定化政策、消費促進政策、産業及びサプライチェーン安 定化政策等の方面から計33項目の具体的措置を打ち出した。特に企 業に関連している項目として、以下の内容が挙げられると思われる。

① 従来の製造業や技術サービス業等に加えて、卸売・小売業等7 つの産業に所属する企業を、増値税控除留保税額の還付政策の 適用対象として組み入れる。

② 社会保険納付猶予政策の適用範囲を、従来の飲食、小売、観光、 民間航空、運輸の５業種以外に、自動車製造業、紡績業、製紙 及び紙製品業等の計17業種を追加し、これら産業に対する養老 保険料の支払猶予期限を22年末までに延長し、また新型コロナ 感染症の影響を著しく受けた地域にある⽣産経営が困難な状況 に陥っているすべての中小企業・零細企業に対して、養老、失 業、労災の3 項目の社会保険料の会社納付部分を段階的に納付 猶予し、猶予期限を22年末まで延長する。

Energy prices have soared over the last few months. Although this evolution has impacted all economic operators, energy-intensive companies are particularly affected. The Belgian legislator has therefore introduced a set of protection measures, including amongst others a so-called “temporary moratorium”. This moratorium provides amongst others protection against bankruptcy and judicial dissolution as well as against attachments on movable assets for energy debts.