Responding this week to HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC’s) policy paper and draft legislation, ‘Modernising and mandating tax adviser registration with HMRC’, Atkinson said the definitions were so wide they would catch many lawyers who ‘neither advertise themselves as tax specialists nor act as tax advisers in any meaningful sense’. Consequently, they could impose ‘significant new burdens and uncertainty on advisers’, particularly sole practitioner solicitors and small law firms.
The Law Society recommended limiting the regime only to those who routinely act as agents regarding their clients’ tax affairs or who hold themselves out as tax advisers, and avoiding duplication by excluding professionals who are already regulated.
The draft legislation, which requires tax advisers to register with HMRC and meet minimum standards, comes into force in April 2026.
