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Death and taxes

July 29, 2010
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Death and taxes


A bizarre story emerged recently, one which is so hard to believe it had me checking the diary to see if it was April 1.

Apparently HM Revenue & Customs have revealed that they caught a would-be tax evader who had hidden £140,000 of undeclared income in his aunt’s grave!  The man’s plan (apparently) was to leave the money there for 20 years as this is the longest that HMRC can go back in their investigations.  Following a tip off and with the permission of the local vicar, HMRC had the grave dug up to recover the money.  Quite honestly, it sounds absurd, but no less an authority than The Sun newspaper ran the story, complete with a quote from Dave Hartnett, who is in charge at HMRC.

I suppose you could say that HMRC had uncovered a plot to evade taxes?

One serious point that should be noted is that HMRC prosecute around 200 people every year for tax evasion and that it is not unknown for people to end up in prison if found guilty.

For more realistic (and legal!) ways to reduce your tax bill, you should talk to your Barnes Roffe LLP relationship partner or any member of the tax department.

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