Skip to content

27 January, 2023

Subscribe Advertise About Us
  • My Account
  • Register
  • Log In
  • Log Out

Board Agenda

  • Governance
  • Strategy
  • Risk
  • Ethics
  • News
    • Categories

      • View All
      • Board Moves
    • Davos resilience

      News round-up: this week in governance

      Lessons from Davos; companies risk sliding back on ethical practices; economics affects everyone; Sir John...

    • audit reform UK Audit reform in the UK risks ‘losing momentum’

      The Financial Reporting Council still awaits the proposed new statutory powers that would allow it...

    • Elon Musk Glass Lewis Elon Musk weighs in against ISS and Glass Lewis

      On Twitter, Musk complains that large proxy advisers hold ‘far too much power’ over shareholder...

  • Insight
    • Categories

      • View all
      • Governance
      • Strategy
      • Risk
      • Ethics
      • Board Expertise
      • finance
      • Technology
    • climate litigation

      Climate litigation: how 2022 will shape 2023

      This past year saw a rise in climate litigation, with a focus on the commercial...

    • value whistleblowing

      Why we need to value whistleblowing

      Encouraging staff to speak up and stop harm can reduce legal and reputational risk—both for...

    • HR corporate trust

      HR: How to build employee trust in corporate culture

      The right HR director is essential to lead on a culture that gets the best...

  • Comment
      • View all
    • A week of business moving to the centre of human rights

      A week of events signals the initiatives underway to have companies play a central role...

    • audit reform IIA Why we need audit reform right now

      There is an "urgent need" for reform to the audit landscape as well as internal...

    • climate change energy crisis Sustainability and climate change: the other energy crisis

      The world is addicted to cheap energy. We need to admit this and have the...

  • Interviews
      • View All Interviews
      • Podcasts
      • Webinars
    • Board priorities 2023 Board priorities 2023: tact, trust and transparency

      We asked key figures what would help boards this year. The answers ranged from 'smarter...

    • Group of investors/shareholders in glass building Climate issues likely to figure prominently at next year’s AGMs

      A recent webinar heard that say-on-climate voting is expected to rise, while ESG remains a...

    • NEDs role NEDs ‘needed more than ever’ in times of uncertainty

      The non-executive director’s role is to both challenge and listen to management, agreed the panel...

  • Careers
      • View all
      • Selection
      • Board Moves
    • NED recruitment News round-up: this week in governance

      Your country needs NEDs; governance does not compute; financial firms get more women on board;...

    • HR corporate trust HR: How to build employee trust in corporate culture

      The right HR director is essential to lead on a culture that gets the best...

    • powerful CEOs Boards want powerful CEOs in tough times

      Single-minded chief executives have greater staying ability when business conditions are uncertain, research finds

  • Resource Centre
      • White Paper Downloads
      • Book Reviews
      • Corporate & Advisory Services
    • Edelman Trust Barometer 2023

      2023 Edelman Trust Barometer

      The report is the result of the Edelman Trust Institute's research, which sampled more than...

    • Sophos 2023 Threat Report

      Barriers to entry for would-be cybercriminals are lower, with tools and tactics becoming available to...

    • The C-Suite Outlook 2023: On the Edge

      The Conference Board 2023 C-Suite Outlook survey reveals the events that C-suite executives see as...

  • Events
  • Search by topic
    • Governance
    • Strategy
    • Risk
    • Ethics
    • Regulation
    • ESG
    • Investor Relations
    • Selection
    • Board Expertise
    • finance
    • Technology

Corporate tax evasion crimes added to Criminal Finances Act

by Lucy Trevelyan on October 3, 2017

Failure to prevent the facilitation of UK and foreign tax evasion have been implemented as new corporate offences under the Criminal Finances Act.

corporate crime

Photo: Shutterstock

New corporate criminal offences of failure to prevent the facilitation of UK and foreign tax evasion have been implemented under Part 3 of the Criminal Finances Act 2017. The Act came into effect at the end of September.

Final guidance on bringing in “reasonable procedures” that may allow companies a defence against the new offences has also be released by HMRC.

The guidance stipulates that where facilitation of foreign tax evasion offence has taken place outside the jurisdiction suffering the tax loss, that jurisdiction must also recognise the act of facilitation as a criminal offence under its domestic law, before the offence can apply under the Act.

This is because the offence triggered by foreign tax evasion requires “dual criminality”, explained Omar Qureshi, partner at CMS in London. “The offending act in question would have been an offence if it occurred in the UK and is an offence under the law of the country where the tax evasion—and its criminal facilitation—actually occurred.”

A corporate body wishing to rely on the defence, the guidance says, must be able to show it had reasonable procedures in place to stop such facilitation by those acting on its behalf, including that it carried out an effective risk assessment which highlighted the risks to be alleviated by extra controls. This assessment should be documented and kept under review.

When assessing whether prevention procedures are “reasonable” and “proportionate”, the size of the organisation will be an important factor, the guidance says, but the nature and complexity of the business involved should also be considered. The guidance adds that those who provide financial or investment advice are likely to be in a high-risk category for the purpose of the new offences.

Suggestions for tax evasion and general fraud training for SMEs are included in the guidance, although previous requirements to include information on penalties for committing an offence and the social and economic effects of failing to prevent tax evasion are dropped.

“In our experience,” Qureshi added, “indicating to attendees the risk of criminal penalties for failing to comply with the corporate compliance controls often assists in focusing individuals’ attention on the need to be vigilant.”

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail

Related Posts

  • Global minimum corporate tax rate negotiations 'need a fairer forum'
    May 18, 2022
    Global map with currencies

    US treasury secretary Janet Yellen is in Europe to push for agreement on the deal across 136 countries. But critics warn it misses the mark.

  • Are UK corporate governance rules leading to market malaise?
    January 14, 2022
    Share listings board

    A recent article argued the UK needs "more directors who understand risk-taking, not virtue signalling" if London is to regain its status.

  • Pandemic 'has shown how vital employees are to corporate success'
    November 9, 2021
    Employees commuting to work

    Chartered Governance Institute report reveals 53% of FTSE 350 firms have changed their approach to “workforce voice” during Covid-19.

  • EuropeanIssuers calls for EU law to apply to 'third country' companies
    December 17, 2021
    EU flag

    The proposal raises the possibility of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive being applied to UK firms trading online in the EU.

For thoughtful journalism, expert insights on corporate governance and an extensive library of reports, guides and tools to help boards and directors navigate the complexities of their roles, subscribe to Board Agenda

Autumn 2017, corporate crime, corporate tax evasion, Criminal Finances Act 2017, failure to prevent, HMRC, legislation, SMEs, Summer 2017

Search


Sign up to our Newsletter

Receive independent news, thoughtful journalism & expert insights about leadership, corporate governance & key boardroom issues straight to your inbox every week.

SIGN UP

Follow Us

 

 

 

 

Most Popular

  • Activist investor campaigns rise back up to pre-Covid levels
  • How to ensure stakeholders trust your sustainability reporting
  • Companies ‘will face growing climate litigation’
  • News round-up: this week in governance
  • Climate litigation: how 2022 will shape 2023
 

Featured Partner Profile

Diligent

Diligent

Diligent Corporation, which was founded in 2001, is headquartered in New York, NY with a European HQ in London. Diligent’s modern governance platform empowers leaders and teams at every level of the organisation to digitally transform and create ...

Featured Partner Resources

2022 AGM Season Forecast: An Eye on The Horizon

To help prepare for AGMs in 2022, Equiniti (EQ) hi...

Stakeholder Engagement: A Roadmap for UK Plc Boards

This guide aims to provide directors and their col...

Digital Boards: How Technology Adoption is Driving Culture Change and Resiliency

Digital tools proved their worth to boards during ...
Leadership in AI report

Leadership in AI

This report from Board Agenda and Mazars, in assoc...
Creativity in a Crisis: a Boardroom Map for Innovation

Creativity in a Crisis: a Boardroom Map for Innovation

In the uncertain times at the height of any crisis...
Board Directors Guide to D&O Liability Insurance - November 2020 - AIG & Board Agenda

Board Directors' Guide to D&O Liability Insurance

Directors face liability over a range of new threa...
Leadership-in-Risk-Management-Board-Report

Leadership in Risk Management: Board Report

Board Agenda, in association with Mazars and INSEA...
Director's Guide to Internal Investigations

A Director's Guide to Conducting Internal Investigations

An internal investigation must be handled meticulo...

 


 

ADVERTISE – FREE CORPORATE LISTING

FREE - Add your company profile to our Corporate & Advisory Directory.
ADD

ADVERTISE – PROMOTE YOUR REPORTS & WHITEPAPERS

FREE - Add your company profile to our Corporate & Advisory Directory.
Add Resource

Register Free

Register to receive free article views, selected resource downloads, and all the latest news alerts straight to your inbox. Register


  • Editors & Contributors
  • Editorial Advisory Board
  • Corporate & Advisory Services
  • Media Marketing Solutions
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • Board Director Network
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Sitemap
|