Are you a UK taxpayer with undeclared income or gains in bank accounts in Liechtenstein? Then use the tax amnesty set up by HMRC to avoid having your account closed and fines imposed, says Lucy Warwick-Ching in the FT.
Under the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility (LDF), individuals may declare unpaid tax going back ten years and pay penalties of just 10% of any tax owed. That’s provided their account or investment vehicle was opened in Britain. It’s a pity just 175 out of around 10,000 potentially affected taxpayers have made a disclosure under LDF, according to law firm McGrigors.
There’s another reason for not delaying, says Louise Armistead in The Sunday Telegraph. Two weeks ago Liechtenstein passed radical laws which come into force in September, under which every bank account will be “subject to a mandatory tax audit”.
UK taxpayers will then have to use the amnesty, or “take their money out” of Leichtenstein. Recently, tax avoiders from other jurisdictions have been “piling in” to take advantage. To enjoy the LDF, you must open an account in Liechtenstein.