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With that I would go permie and immediately put the company into MVL.
Close it down ASAP.
Then watch while the world burns...
"I can put any old tat in my sig, put quotes around it and attribute to someone of whom I've heard, to make it sound true."
- Voltaire/Benjamin Franklin/Anne Frank...
I suppose. I'd be of the view that if you've had contract reviews that the risk, once your company is closed, is nil. The risk of HMRC chasing a closed company for IR35 is virtually nil -- it's never happened. The risk of them ever being able to pierce the corporate veil is close to nil because IR35 is so nebulous. The risk of them doing so if you've had contract reviews and so can demonstrate that you 'were responsible' is so vanishingly small that I personally would never bother to insure against it.
But to each his own. Admittedly it isn't expensive.
A factor that would determine how I handled such a scenario is how much money is sat in your Ltd's bank account as profit. That would be the basis of how to go about closing the Ltd (MVL if over £25k) and also what risk exposure there is to IR35 as any tax liability comes out of what the Ltd can pay.
So you are saying the amount of tax you pay if your investigated for ir35 and lose is limited to what’s in your companies bank?
So you are saying the amount of tax you pay if your investigated for ir35 and lose is limited to what’s in your companies bank?
It depends. Limited liability protection is unlikely to be transferred to personal liability if due diligence on IR35 assessment to operate outside of it can be shown to be done. i.e. if you have contracts reviewed and have a written determination by a reputable third party then that shows you operated in good faith and it would take exceptional circumstances for HMRC to chase you personally for tax liabilities that fall under the PAYE system of the Ltd, so if the funds in the Ltd don't cover the liability then HMRC may win an investigation but not be able to collect the full amount they now say is due.
The issue with 'it depends' is the potential for a lot of drawn out hassle and stress while an investigation is ongoing, so the approach of getting contracts reviewed and backed up with insurance is a good way of trying to cover that as best you can.
Google 'IR35 and personal liability' for more information from accountants and those that have dealt with this scenario for real clients (contractors), that is the basis of my understanding of how this may apply.
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