Last month HMRC launched a discussion document aimed at tackling ‘dishonest’ tax agents. This was accompanied by draft legislation and a response to the previous consultation and draft legislation launched in February 2010.

Chartered Accountants Ireland submitted a response to the original draft legislation which is published on our website at www.charteredaccountants.ie/

Together with our fellow professional bodies, the Institute was a strong voice in opposing the original draft legislation and as a result HMRC had to effectively ‘go back to the drawing board’. As part of the consultation process the Institute's Tax department was represented by Brian Keegan and Leontia Doran at a HMRC workshop last July which discussed the profession's deep concerns with the original draft legislation.

HMRC hope that the revised legislation achieves its objectives in this area of providing ‘a fair, balanced and proportionate response to tackling the small number of dishonest tax agents’.

Brief highlights of the revised draft legislation are as follows:-

• The ability for HMRC to issue ‘dishonest conduct notices’, with a right of appeal where there is evidence a tax agent has dishonestly advised or assisted clients;
• Access to the working papers of dishonest tax agents, subject to approval by the First Tier Tax Tribunal once dishonest conduct has been determined;
• Where working papers are no longer in the power or possession of the tax agent, HMRC will be able to request these from a third party; and
• A civil penalty on the ‘dishonest’ tax agent and a power allowing HMRC to publish details on the HMRC website where the agent does not make a full disclosure.

Chartered Accountants Ireland will be carefully scrutinising the revised draft legislation with a view to submitting a response by the closing date of 16 September.

The discussion document and draft legislation can be accessed at http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channelsPortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pageLibrary_ConsultationDocuments&propertyType=document&columns=1&id=HMCE_PROD1_031460 and the response to the previous consultation document accessed at http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channelsPortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb =true&_pageLabel= pageLibrary_ConsultationDocuments&propertyType= document&columns=1&id=HMCE_PROD1_031461