Originally printed in Taxation on 15 June 2016
Part 10 of the Finance Bill 2016 contains a further raft of measures introduced as part of the government’s ‘war’ on tax avoidance. These days there is almost no point in questioning whether such measures are required or will make any real difference to the tax that is lost each year through avoidance. It will therefore be essential for advisers to be clear on the scope of these rules even if, as is likely, they are of limited practical importance to most taxpayers and advisers.
The new proposals cover changes to the general anti-abuse rule (GAAR), including a penalty, new controls intended to combat ‘serial tax avoiders’, sanctions on unco-operative large businesses and a range of additional measures directed at the offshore world.
