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Welcome to Purely Tax Assistance
Purely Tax Assistance Frequently Asked Questions
We are happy to tell you about businesses we have helped. Please see the case studies below:-
- What is the Purely Tax Assistance service?
- This is a service that assists Sole Traders, Partnerships, Limited Companies and Trusts who are struggling to pay their Tax Bills to HMRC. This includes Self Assessment, VAT, PAYE/NI Contributions, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax.
- Are you Lenders or Accountants?
- We are neither Lenders or Accountants. Our Tax Team work very closely with HMRC and have developed a nationwide relationship with them. In essence our prime function is not to lend money, thereby increasing our client's indebtedness, but to construct Tax Payment Plans for our clients which are sustainable and will allow them to trade out of their present predicament.
- How does it work?
- Our professional Tax Team negotiate with HMRC to arrange for payments to be made by affordable monthly instalments often over a protracted period that is usually longer than could be achieved by other methods.
The client receives a free, no obligation consultation with a top level advisor who will take full consideration of other creditor commitments and put forward precise recommendations. (In our experience 80% of clients ultimately proceed with these recommendations).
- Why would people want this service?
- There are literally hundreds of thousands of business and companies struggling to raise sufficient funds to pay their Tax Bills whilst servicing other essential creditor commitments. It is difficult to raise funds from banks or remortgaging assets, and if there are personal guarantee's outstanding, then closing a business is often not an option.
Failure to repay Tax Debts owed to HMRC will ultimately end up in a 'Winding up Petition' or 'Bankruptcy'. Working with Purely Tax Assistance could possibly avoid this.
- Is there a big market for this service?
- Yes. As of March 2006, the total outstanding debt was recorded at £22bn with £3.9 billion of tax credits overpayments remained to be collected by HMRC at March 2007. This figure is only going to increase with the many businesses experiencing a downturn over the last year thus finding that they are unable to meet their Tax liabilities.
- What is Unique about this service?
- Our trained advisors have taken several years to learn the basis of managing Tax liabilities, they have utilised HMRC own training manuals to produce a comprehensive fact find that ensures they deal with your unpaid tax in a professional and factual manner. A comprehensive financial plan is drawn up and with HMRC approval all payments are made via the Tax Team who will continue to monitor the arrangement with regular 3 monthly reviews to accommodate changing circumstances. The plan might also incorporate arrangements which might have been made with other creditors in constructing a viable solution.
- Will there be a black mark against my name or business name?
- No, this is a private and confidential arrangement between HMRC and the client, we do not credit score or apply for references, nor do we leave footprints or make public information.
- Is this product FSA regulated?
- No, this is a non regulated service.
- How do I know I am getting the best advice?
- Our tax team are registered with the Office of Fair Trading under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. The staff are trained to the highest industry standards and have many years' experience of debt management in general, and also specialise in the specific area of tax debt administration. Our advisors are familiar with the law and practice relating to tax debts, are skilled and experienced in dealing with HMRC on behalf of clients with tax arrears. They offer a Code of Conduct to HMRC, as to the high professional standards within which they operate. This is intended to assure HMRC as to the standard of service they can expect in negotiations on behalf of clients. They also adhere to all aspects of the data protection act to ensure client confidentiality.
- How much does it cost?
- There are no processing fees or upfront costs for the client to pay and the initial advice from our tax experts is given free of charge and with no obligation. Once a payment plan has been agreed the first instalment is taken to cover fees and the introducer's commission. Deductions are made from further instalment payments to a maximum of 15% to cover the watching brief and ongoing support the client receives from our Tax Team. To offset these costs in many cases the client will not be charged further interest or penalties from HMRC.
- Can clients do it themselves?
- Yes they can and the government have setup a Business Payment Support Service with a special contact number to help companies that are unable to pay some or all the amount they owe. There is a down side though as this only applies to payments which have fallen due since November 2008 when the BPSS was launched and concessions are only granted for those who have made contact prior to payments falling due. HMRC will generally extend the payment period to ensure the liability is discharged prior to July 2009, however, interest charges will continue to be applied. Such agreements usually have little regard for affordability and do not incorporate an individually tailored plan. In extreme cases the tax team may be able to provide a Time To Pay Plan over as long as three to five years.
- Surely my accountant can take care of this for me?
- Accountants generally take care of accounting issues including preparation and submission of relevant documentation to HMRC. They might also be called upon to resolve various issues relating to HMRC, which might include helping to negotiate a little extra time for the client to discharge their tax liabilities. Structuring, negotiating and administering Tax Debt Management, Time to Pay Plans on a monthly basis is a specialist and time consuming process which most accountants might prefer to be excused from. Contacting HMRC to negotiate a client's tax debt can raise all sorts of other issues which many accountants are not overly keen to be involved with and if they were, the fees they would need to charge might only add to the problems of the client.
By comparison the client can take advantage of the help and advice of a specialist Tax Team who are overseen by a leading Tax Barrister without adding to their debts.
- What about further bills?
- As part of the service our tax team will monitor the plan and carry out periodic reviews to take account of future changing circumstances and additional liabilities being incurred by the client, making necessary adjustments to the plan where appropriate.
- What happens if I cannot meet my monthly commitment in any one particular month?
- As previously stated, your circumstances may well change and subsequent modifications to a payment plan may have to be negotiated.
- What is the minimum and maximum Tax debt that you would look to consider?
- Our minimum Tax Debt that we would look to consider is £500. There is no maximum.
- Can you help with longstanding Tax debt?
- Yes. We can look to assist Sole Traders, Partnerships, Limited Companies and Trusts who are facing Bankruptcy, Winding Up Petitions and those with Frozen Bank Accounts.
- I have been served a Petition by HMRC to wind my business up, my account has now been frozen, can you still help?
- Yes we can look to assist you, please contact us
- Are there many people doing this?
- As far as we are aware this is a unique proposition. There are organisations such as Debt Management companies that sometimes include HMRC debt within their debt management plans but generally such services are geared to non priority debt which precludes non priority creditors such as HMRC. There are other organisations, generally linked to Insolvency Practitioners who do undertake initiatives with regards to HMRC debt but once again, constructing full financial time to pay plans is not generally what they are about and one must question the motives of the I.P. involvement.
This is by no means an exhaustive list but hopefully it will have provided you with an insight to this very unique opportunity which both you and your clients can take benefit from. We are sure there will be many other questions you might wish to ask and we will be delighted to deal with those on an individual basis by contacting us at the telephone number or e-mail address given below.
Purely Tax Assistance is a trading name of Purely Group Ltd. Registered in England & Wales, Company Registration No: 05640480
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