1. PRIVATE CLIENTS
1.1. Pre-Owned Assets Tax
Smith & Williamson recently sent a Freedom of Information
request to HMRC regarding the Pre-Owned Assets Tax (POAT) as
follows:
We note the revised POAT guidance recently published on the HMRC
website. However that revised guidance does not disguise the fact
that this tax is an extremely complex area of potentially wide
ranging anti-avoidance which ordinary taxpayers are likely to find
impenetrable. We are also of the opinion that few tax specialists,
either within HMRC or in the profession, are likely to be
sufficiently familiar with the rules to ensure it is operated
properly and effectively.
We would like to clarify how effective this anti-avoidance is in
its current form and as currently implemented in practice. If not
effective in its current form we would have thought there should be
a reconsideration of the extent of abuse against which it is
targeted and whether this can be counteracted by more
