8 February 2018

The government is planning to broaden the circumstances in which certain payments – such as royalties – made to non-UK residents are liable for income tax. A consultation on the subject is running until 23 February.

HMRC has commented that the legislation is primarily aimed at groups of companies rather than individual authors. Authors already have a tax exemption for this, and we have written to HMRC urging that the existing exemption is retained and formalised in any legislation.

Our concern is that the protections may be swept away by accident. The exemption works well for authors and it should be preserved in any legislative change.

Read our full submission to HMRC, with details of the existing situation and possible changes. We encourage you to respond to the consultation to flag up the existing exemption and request that it be protected.

You can respond by emailing withholding-tax.mailbox@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk.