The Law Society of Scotland lent its support to a clamp down on tax avoidance in a new Scottish tax bill. The Revenue Scotland and Tax Powers Bill will provide for the establishment of Revenue Scotland as the tax authority responsible for collecting the two new devolved taxes (Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Landfill Tax) and any other taxes which may be devolved or introduced in future. The Bill also provides for the powers and duties of Revenue Scotland and proposes a Scottish general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR), which is intended to have a wider scope than the UK GAAR that targets abusive arrangements.
Isobel d’Inverno, convener of the Law Society’s Tax Law Committee, said: ‘We have supported the approach of simpler legislation combined with a aeneral anti-avoidance rule (GAAR), particularly in relation to land and buildings transaction tax ... We are concerned, however, that in pursuing the laudable aim of reducing tax avoidance, the Scottish government may not have included sufficient taxpayer protections in relation to the proposed Scottish GAAR. Whether the Scottish GAAR should be applied in any particular case will not always be straightforward. We believe there could be merit in providing for a panel to allow for an independent review as to whether a particular transaction should be counteracted by the GAAR.’
The Law Society of Scotland lent its support to a clamp down on tax avoidance in a new Scottish tax bill. The Revenue Scotland and Tax Powers Bill will provide for the establishment of Revenue Scotland as the tax authority responsible for collecting the two new devolved taxes (Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Landfill Tax) and any other taxes which may be devolved or introduced in future. The Bill also provides for the powers and duties of Revenue Scotland and proposes a Scottish general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR), which is intended to have a wider scope than the UK GAAR that targets abusive arrangements.
Isobel d’Inverno, convener of the Law Society’s Tax Law Committee, said: ‘We have supported the approach of simpler legislation combined with a aeneral anti-avoidance rule (GAAR), particularly in relation to land and buildings transaction tax ... We are concerned, however, that in pursuing the laudable aim of reducing tax avoidance, the Scottish government may not have included sufficient taxpayer protections in relation to the proposed Scottish GAAR. Whether the Scottish GAAR should be applied in any particular case will not always be straightforward. We believe there could be merit in providing for a panel to allow for an independent review as to whether a particular transaction should be counteracted by the GAAR.’
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