Complaints continue to be received by HMRC about possible
furlough fraud by employers.
The government has gone to considerable lengths to support UK
employers and employees during the coronavirus pandemic. A central
feature of this support package has been the introduction of the
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (the ‘Scheme').
Wary of the potential for fraudulent claims, the Scheme requires
employers and their employees to meet certain minimum eligibility
criteria before a claim for funding can be made.
It is widely accepted that at some point in the future HMRC will
conduct an audit exercise to verify the claims made by employers,
but it seems that some employers are taking the risk of submitting
fraudulent claims, perhaps on the basis that HMRC may struggle to
accurately audit every single claim.
