An ‘adult
entertainment taskforce’ will target strip clubs and online escort agencies
that cover up thousands of pounds a day in profits
Strippers,
escort agencies and lap dancing clubs have been told to reveal all to an “adult
entertainment taskforce” set up to tease out millions of pounds of unpaid
income tax.
HMRC
officials said they will strip tax-dodging club owners of their profits in a
probe aimed at traders and entertainers evading VAT, income tax and national
insurance.
HMRC
estimates that some club owners and online escort agencies are earning
thousands of pounds a day but hiding the payments from officials.
The rise of
the internet has caused “a drastic increase in online escort agencies” said
HMRC, which estimates that the adult entertainment industry could be worth up
to £5bn.
Jim
Stevenson, head of HMRC Taskforces, said: “Large numbers of people working in
this industry are paying the tax they owe and they don’t have anything to worry
about. The people being targeted by this taskforce have no intention of playing
by the rules, and we won’t tolerate this.
“No industry
is safe where tax evasion is concerned – we won’t stop tracking people down and
taking back what they owe.”
It has set an
initial target of raising £2.5m in unpaid tax from the industry.
More than 140
HMRC taskforces have been launched since 2011 and have collected more than
£404m, including £109m brought in during the first six months of this financial
year.
Officials
have previously targetted eBay traders, private tutors, Ann Summers parties,
and the app economy – where sales may not have been declared to the taxman.
HMRC
highlighted an investigation which last month led to the jailing of escort
agency fraudster Janine Adeleke of Bexhill on Sea, East Sussex. She claimed to
be unemployed but was running an escort agency, Carltons of London, that
claimed to offer the “finest London escorts to gentlemen of distinction”.
The
investigation found that Adeleke had not declared any income, stealing more
than £312,000 in unpaid income tax, national insurance and tax credits. At the
same time, she fraudulently claimed more than £37,000 in income support and
other state benefits, and laundered £157,000 of illicit cash.
Richard Las,
deputy director of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service, said: “Adeleke broke the
law to fund a lavish lifestyle and private education for her children, stealing
money from vital public services designed to support and help struggling families.”
Investigators
found that Adeleke had splashed out at least £120,000 on private schools while
spending lavishly on beauty treatments and holidays. She was sentenced to three
years in prison.
This post was originally published here: Strippers
Told To Bare All About Tax Affairs Under HMRC Crackdown
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