TC09623 - [2025] UKFTT 01064 (TC)

The best approach to evidence is to rely on documents, but these are no no longer obtainable.

HMRC have major technical difficulties with the discovery assessments. They have no evidence of the employment arrangements between the appellant, his employer, and the end users. There was no discovery. The fact that there were no valid tax returns makes it more difficult for HMRC to establish an insufficiency given the time that has elapsed.

HMRC had the opportunity following Mr Dyer’s letter of 2 October 2018 to provide information to the appellant which they failed to do. Many of the problems stem from this failure.

The case law timeline demonstrates that HMRC were not doing nothing between the issue discovery assessments and the letter to the appellant in October 2021 and their subsequent view of the matter letter in 2022.

That correspondence, together with the review conclusion letter, clearly demonstrates the basis on which HMRC are challenging the appellant’s position both as regards the validity of the discovery assessment and the technical grounds for justifying their view that the payments to the appellant made by way of a loan were in fact redirected income and thus subject to income tax.