Loan written off: are you in HMRC’s crosshairs?
HMRC is writing to directors that took a loan from their company that was later written off or released. What should you do if you receive a letter?
The letters are being sent to taxpayers who:
- had a director’s loan that was written off or released between April 2019 and April 2023; and
- did not declare the amount as income on their self-assessment tax return.
The amount released or written off is treated as an income distribution and is taxable at the appropriate dividend rates. If you do need to pay extra tax you can tell HMRC by using the digital disclosure service. This service can be used even if the loan was written off or released before April 2019, but for loans released or written off since 6 April 2023, you can simply amend your tax return to reflect the additional income.
Related Topics
-
Meaning of “new and unused” clarified for CAs purposes
The guidance on what “new and unused” means for the purposes of first-year allowances has been updated in order to make things clearer. What’s the full story?
-
Scammers already targeting pensioners over winter fuel payments
Phishing attacks are already being sent to pensioners purporting to be from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). What’s going on and how can you avoid becoming a victim?
-
Winter fuel payments to be clawed back via tax system
A government U-turn on the winter fuel payment was announced this week, with a new means-tested threshold. How will this work in practice?
This website uses both its own and third-party cookies to analyze our services and navigation on our website in order to improve its contents (analytical purposes: measure visits and sources of web traffic). The legal basis is the consent of the user, except in the case of basic cookies, which are essential to navigate this website.