The original facility was introduced in September 2009 and was due to end on 31 March 2015. HM Revenue & Customs claim that the number of disclosures received already exceed the expected number for the whole period. To recognise the success of the scheme, two enhancements have been announced.

The first enhancement is that the Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility has been extended by a year to 5 April 2016. This could be good news for anyone wishing to take advantage of the facility. Whilst this may not be suitable for everyone wanting to disclose underpaid tax, those who do can benefit from favourable settlement provisions.

Secondly, the arrangement with Liechtenstein has now been formalised. A groundbreaking tax agreement has been reached with Liechtenstein with the signing of a Double Taxation Agreement (DTA). This means that the UK now has a DTA with all members of the European Economic Area.  These agreements are designed to ensure that taxpayers are taxed fairly, and that the respective countries receive a fair share of the tax revenues. 

If you would like to discuss the above, please email tax@menzies.co.uk