Red Apple Cleaning Management Ltd v HMRC

In Red Apple Cleaning Management Ltd v HMRC (TC00860 – 22 December) a company (R) which operated a cleaning business failed to account for PAYE on the amounts it paid to the cleaners who worked for it. HMRC issued determinations under Income Tax (PAYE) Regulations SI 2003/2682 reg 80. R appealed contending that the cleaners were self-employed. The First-Tier Tribunal rejected this contention and dismissed the appeals holding that the cleaners were employees.

Why it matters: SI 2003/2682 reg 80 provides that HMRC can issue determinations to recover the tax due where an employer has failed to account for PAYE. The First-Tier Tribunal upheld HMRC’s view that the cleaners who worked for the appellant company were employees.