Should offshore companies be banned from using furlough?
Furlough is first and foremost about protecting jobs and ensuring that hard working employees are not made redundant during the current emergency. Undoubtedly there are changes that could be made to our tax system to ensure that a “fair” amount of tax is paid by all, but it would be harsh to penalise employees of international groups by prohibiting their international employers from participating in the current government support arrangements. And it is also wrong to assume that all offshore companies do not pay their taxes in the UK. All companies (onshore or offshore) would be wise,however, to review their tax strategies and remember “we are all in it together” and that in interpreting tax rules the courts in the future will be looking through “new normal” lenses.
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