Stan James founders face tax tribunal
Operator's move to Gibraltar being questioned by HMRC " authority looking to have Stan James revenues taxed as personal income.
The founders of Gibraltar-licensed bookmaker Stan James are to appear before a tax tribunal over allegations they moved the business offshore to avoid paying UK gambling tax on its operations.
The Mail on Sunday reports that founders Steven and Anne Fisher, along with their son and current board member Peter, are to be investigated after moving the telephone and betting arm to the peninsula in 2000. The paper claims that the Her Majesty’s Revenues and Customs (HMRC) views the decision as one based solely around a decision to avoid paying UK tax, and not for commercial reasons.
Should the Fishers be unable to justify its decision to move offshore for business reasons, the operator’s revenues would be classified as personal income, which would see Stan James forced to pay income tax at a higher rate than it currently pays in Gibraltar. Licensees based on the British territory pay around 22% in income tax on profits, however the levy rises to 40% on earnings above £100,000.
The news comes as the UK government looks to combat a number of tax avoidance schemes after it was announced last week that several high-profile celebrities had moved tens of millions of pounds worth of earnings into offshore accounts to avoid paying the full rate of tax.
In his budget speech in March this year, Chancellor George Osborne confirmed plans to tax online operators at a point of consumption rather than point of supply, meaning that companies will no longer be able to avoid paying UK tax by moving to offshore jurisdictions such as Gibraltar, Alderney and the Isle of Man. The deadline for operators to respond to the UK government’s April consultation paper on proposed changes to the taxation system for the online gaming industry closes on Thursday June 28.