For over twenty years more than 700 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted for fraud by the Post Office. In January 2024 the Government announced a 'mass exoneration' to clear their criminal convictions and agreeing to make an upfront payment of £75,000 in extra compensation.

Happy New Year!

We start the year with last minute tips for Self Assessment and a new Agent Update; noting that the Spring Budget is set for 6 March and that a new condoc considers transparency for land-holding trusts.

In The Legend of the Golden Temple & Others v HMRC [2023] TC08999 ten companies created by a common director were disqualified from the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), for failing to meet the risk-to-capital condition, the trading condition and the shares requirement. Creating ten companies to perform the work of one evidenced a Disqualifying Arrangement too.

A new government's consultation, ‘Transparency of land ownership involving trusts’ explores widening access to trust information held on the Register of Overseas Entities, as well as considering how the ownership of land by trusts can be made more transparent. 

In MW High Tech Projects UK Limited v HMRC [2023] TC09011 a company was unable to make a valid claim for a Research and Development Expenditure Credit (RDEC) as it had failed to prepare accounts on the 'going concern' basis.