HMRC’s warning comes after it signed agreements with all three jurisdictions earlier this year which are aimed at increasing tax information sharing between the British Crown Dependencies and the UK.
The agreements were based, in part, on the principles of the Foreign Account Tax Compliant Act (FATCA), under which the US government is asking governments and businesses around the world to comply with strict tax information sharing agreements in order to cut down on tax evasion by US citizens.
The Isle of Man was the first to sign an agreement with the UK, followed by Guernsey and Jersey which both signed in March. All three jurisdictions announced plans to enter into the agreements in October last year.
As a forerunner to implementation of the agreements, HMRC has opened a new disclosure facility for use exclusively by those with assets in any of the three jurisdictions. In a similar vein to disclosure facilities launched in the past, the Revenue said it expects to raise around £1bn in unpaid tax over the next five years.
Under the terms of the facility, those who choose to disclose will face more lenient penalties than those who are ultimately found out after the tax sharing agreements come into place. Those who are caught could face criminal charges, penalties of between 10% and 40% on the assets hidden and being publically “named and shamed”.
HMRC said those wishing to disclose have until 30 September 2016 to do so.
Exchequer secretary David Gauke said: “The net is closing in on those seeking to hide their money offshore to evade their tax responsibilities.”
To read more about the three new disclosure facilities (the IoM disclosure facility, the Guernsey disclosure facility and the Jersey disclosure facility) and for information on the existing Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility, visit the HMRC website.
