HMRC: Finance Act 2009 Defaulter Publication Threshold Increases

• Section 94 of the Finance Act 2009 permits HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to publish details of deliberate tax defaulters.
• HMRC's power to publish currently applies when the tax lost from a deliberate default exceeds £25,000.
• An upcoming statutory instrument, 'The Finance Act 2009 (Publishing Details of Deliberate Tax Defaulters: Increase to Threshold) Order 2026,' is set to increase this publication threshold to £50,000, effective from the November 2026 publication.

The existing £25,000 threshold plays a crucial role in HMRC's enforcement strategy, acting as a filter to ensure that only deliberate defaults involving a significant amount of lost tax are subject to public disclosure.

A forthcoming statutory instrument, formally titled 'The Finance Act 2009 (Publishing Details of Deliberate Tax Defaulters: Increase to Threshold) Order 2026,' is set to modify the financial threshold that dictates when HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) publicly discloses information about individuals and entities who have committed deliberate tax defaults. This impending change signals an adjustment to the criteria governing the transparency measures employed by the UK's tax authority.

Currently, the legal framework allows HMRC to publish specific details, including the names, of those who have been penalised for intentional tax non-compliance. This power is exercised under the provisions of Section 94 of the Finance Act 2009. The existing rule specifies that such public disclosure occurs only when the amount of tax deliberately lost or evaded surpasses a particular monetary value. The upcoming Order 2026 indicates a recalibration of this long-standing benchmark.

The legislative authority for HMRC's public naming policy is firmly rooted in Section 94 of the Finance Act 2009. This section grants the Commissioners for HM Revenue and Customs the power to make public information concerning individuals and organisations that have received penalties for what are classified as 'deliberate defaults.' These are not merely errors or oversights, but intentional actions taken to avoid tax obligations, which typically result in significant financial penalties.

Under the current regulations, the critical determinant for whether a defaulter's details are made public is the financial impact of their actions. Specifically, HMRC is authorised to publish this information only in cases where the tax lost due to the deliberate default exceeds a sum of £25,000. This threshold has historically served as a benchmark for identifying cases of substantial tax evasion deemed worthy of public scrutiny and potential reputational damage.

The existing £25,000 threshold plays a crucial role in HMRC's enforcement strategy, acting as a filter to ensure that only deliberate defaults involving a significant amount of lost tax are subject to public disclosure. This measure is intended to deter serious tax evasion and promote compliance by adding a layer of public accountability beyond financial penalties. The publication of names serves as a powerful deterrent, impacting the reputation of those found to have deliberately avoided their tax responsibilities.

An increase to this threshold, as indicated by 'The Finance Act 2009 (Publishing Details of Deliberate Tax Defaulters: Increase to Threshold) Order 2026,' means that fewer deliberate defaulters, specifically those whose lost tax falls between the current and the new, higher threshold, would be subject to public naming. The threshold for publication will increase from £25,000 to £50,000 potential lost revenue, effective from the November 2026 publishing details of deliberate defaulters publication. Such an adjustment could reflect a shift in HMRC's focus or a re-evaluation of what constitutes a sufficiently high-value deliberate default to warrant public identification. This change could alter the landscape of public enforcement actions against tax evasion.

Source: Reporting based on official UK government documentation.