Tax deadline looms for offshore investors

Account holders who fail to notify HM Revenue and Customs of unpaid tax by 22 June 2007 could face investigation and penalties of up to 100% of the outstanding tax. The amnesty is seen as being driven by a crackdown on offshore tax evasion by the government department’s Offshore Fraud Project Group, and follows HMRC’s victory over Barclays Bank in May 2006, which forced the bank to hand over the details of thousands of offshore customers’ bank accounts. Steve Besford, head of tax investigations at Chiltern, says: "With just one week to go, it's make your mind up time. If you have unpaid ...