Re: I cannot understand why HMRC pursues contractors so much.
If one contractor had a potential quarter of a million quid tax bill, can you imagine how much they'd rake in if (eg) Amazon paid their share?
Amazon probably are paying their share. It's just easier for HMRC to go after small businesses than huge ones like Amazon and their legions of accountants & lawyers.
And HMRC seems to like making things up. I had a company created specifically to design, build and commission a system for a client. Job done, VAT & taxes paid for that work, but then HMRC sent an assessment for another £210k VAT to be paid within 7 days, or else. Then some fun trying to get HMRC to explain their calculations, which included asking the police if they'd consider investigating HMRC for fraud.. And apparently the police can't investigate HMRC without HMRC's permission. Fun times. Luckily I didn't have to go legal & got it resolved.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
