Beigebell Ltd Loses Appeal on MTIC Fraud Knowledge in Upper Tribunal Ruling

• In May 2019, the First-tier Tribunal allowed Beigebell Ltd’s appeal against HMRC assessments accusing the company of involvement in missing trader fraud
• The Upper Tribunal in June 2020 found that the First-tier Tribunal did not consider all factors indicating Beigebell’s possible actual knowledge of the fraud
• The case was sent back to a new First-tier Tribunal judge for a fresh evaluation
• In April 2023, the First-tier Tribunal determined that Beigebell and its director Mr Orton knew or should have known about the fraud connection in their transactions
• The Upper Tribunal dismissed Beigebell’s subsequent appeal, supporting the First-tier Tribunal’s findings on actual and blind-eye knowledge
• The First-tier Tribunal noted the transactions lacked commercial reality, leading to the conclusion that fraud was the only reasonable explanation for the deals
• The Upper Tribunal upheld the First-tier Tribunal’s application of the burden of proof and rejected Beigebell’s other legal arguments as irrelevant or incorrect

Source: taxscape.deloitte.com

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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