Little Piece of Paradise Ltd v HMRC

In Little Piece of Paradise Ltd v HMRC [2021] UKFTT 369 (TC) (18 October 2021) the FTT found that the relationship between Sky and a sports TV presenter was one of a contract of service and it therefore dismissed the service company’s appeal against PAYE determinations and NICs notices.

This is the latest in a series of cases involving TV presenters engaged by broadcasters via personal service companies (PSCs). The question was whether if the presenter had been engaged directly the hypothetical contract would have been a contract of service (employment) or a contract for services (self-employment). HMRC has won most of these cases and this one was no exception.

There were three contracts in question spanning a six-year period and providing for a fee each year for services to be performed. These resulted in the appellant (LPPL) providing the individual (DC)...