You can now report tax-dodging businesses via the web

Following recent initiatives to clamp down on tax evasion, you can now report businesses you believe are evading tax via the web.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has made clamping down on tax cheats one of its key priorities in recent years, with a reported £42m being recovered since 2005 as a result of information provided by members of the public via traditional telephone hotlines.

Given the state of the public finances, it will probably come as no surprise that the Government is keen to increase its efforts to shore up the Treasury's coffers. You can now use the web to report tax evaders at www.hmrc.gov.uk/tax-evasion

According to HMRC, this new facility, enabling members of the public to raise their concerns online, builds on HMRC’s cross tax approach to compliance, helping to identify and tackle high-risk cases early on. Under its new behaviourally based system of penalties HMRC can now charge penalties of up to 100% for those individuals who deliberately evade tax.

Interestingly, information received through the hotlines over past years has led to the successful recovery of 320kg of class A drugs, along with 27 million illegal cigarettes and 9.7 tonnes of hand rolling tobacco!

"Denying funding for essential public services"

Linking the relatively small amount of tax recovered via hotlines in recent years with the multi-billion pound black hole in the Government's finances, Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said:

“We are committed to ensuring the tax system operates fairly and efficiently, and encourage anyone to share their information on activities they think may be unlawful. Reporting your concerns online is quick and easy. By doing so you will be helping us to catch people who are unfairly competing with honest businesses and denying funding for essential public services.

“Being able to report potential tax evasion online is just the latest step in demonstrating that for tax cheats the game is up.

“Information provided by the public is important and HMRC takes all allegations seriously.”