HMRC puts 200 billionaires on UK tax crackdown hitlist

‘Compliance managers’ to have discussions with authority’s wealthiest customers in attempt to raise tax revenues

The UK’s tax authority is assigning dedicated “customer compliance managers” to more than 200 billionaires as part of a crackdown meant to raise £500m for the public purse.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it had for the first time compiled a list of billionaires who are required to pay tax in the UK, regardless of whether they formally live in the country, to tackle a “wealthy tax gap” caused by those who do not pay what they ought.

In an announcement after Wednesday’s budget, the authority said it was allocating a customer compliance manager (CCM) to each billionaire with a UK tax footprint, whose complex tax affairs are often hard for HMRC to manage.