The HMRC have released figure as a result of a Freedom of Information request that shows a double in reports to the HMRC tax evasion hotline for the 2017-18 tax year.
For the 2017-18 year, a total of 40m695 tax evasion reports can be counted on the hotline. This is a rise by more than double, with tax evasion hotline reports sitting at 20,200 for the previous year.
The HMRC encourage people to report their own tax irregularities, with understanding and willingness to help and reward. We can recommend with certainty that contacting the HMRC or a tax professional is the best step if you have any concerns regarding irregularities in your taxes/income.
An HMRC reward scheme is also in place that encourages people to report any inconsistencies or suspicions of other people in regards to their taxes. It has been confirmed that for the HMRC paid out £343,500 to informants in financial rewards for the 2017-18 year.
Although the HMRC cannot equate the exact amount of recovered tax as a result of the increased reports, they recovered a total of £30.3bn via wider work to crack down on error, avoidance and evasion.