Spotting employment tax ‘deal breakers’

It is important to review employment tax issues at the earliest stage before selling a company/business. As part of this, the adviser should: conduct status checks of self-employed individuals (including non-executive directors used through personal service companies); check that any termination payments have been treated correctly for tax purposes, especially where the target company has undergone restructuring in the years running up to sale; and check whether employers have properly deducted PAYE/NICs. Failure to resolve these issues can result in very significant tax costs and may even be ‘deal breakers’ on a potential sale.