Anti Tax Evasion Policy
Valenti Recruitment Ltd are committed to preventing the facilitation of Tax Evasion
Introduction
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1 Tax evasion is a major issue in world trade, despite the many dedicated efforts to prevent it.
1.1 Tax evasion is very damaging to the societies in which it occurs. It diverts money and resources from those who need them most, hindering economic and social development.
1.2 Tax evasion affects us as a UK organisation if it is criminally facilitated anywhere in our business.
1.3 We run our business with integrity and in an honest and ethical manner. All of us must work together to ensure we remain untainted by tax evasion facilitation.
1.4 This policy is a crucial element of that effort. It has the full support of the Directors and Management. It sets out the steps all of us must take to prevent tax evasion facilitation in our business and to comply with relevant legislation. It does not form part of any employee’s contract of employment and we may amend it at any time.
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2 What is tax evasion and how does this affect us?
2.1 Tax evasion is the illegal non-payment or under-payment of taxes. It is usually perpetrated by falsely declaring or not declaring taxes due to the relevant tax authority. Tax evasion is a criminal offence. It can be committed by an individual, e.g. in relation to income tax or VAT, or a legal entity, e.g. in relation to corporation tax.
2.2 Circumstances in which tax evasion may occur in relation to our business include:
2.2.1 The use of individual subcontractors;
2.2.2 Making vehicles, goods, materials, tools, and equipment available to employees which could then be used by them outside of their employment;
2.2.3 Where our customers and/or transactions involve private banking facilities;
2.2.4 Where our customers and/or transactions involve complex or cash payment mechanisms.
2.3 The Criminal Finances Act 2017 (CFA 2017) came into force on 30 September 2017. It introduces a corporate offence of failure to prevent the criminal facilitation of tax evasion.
2.4 The offence has three ingredients, all of which must exist for criminal liability to arise:
2.4.1 Criminal tax evasion by a taxpayer, e.g. by a Client;
2.4.2 Criminal facilitation of that tax evasion by a contractor, supplier, employee, agent, or any other person performing services for or on our behalf; and
2.4.3 Failure by the controlling mind of the company to prevent our employee, agent, etc., from committing the criminal facilitation.
2.5 This corporate offence can be committed regardless of whether the tax evaded is owed in the UK or in a foreign country and can occur in both the public and private sectors.
2.6 There is only one relevant defence to the corporate offence of failure to prevent the criminal facilitation of tax evasion: when the tax evasion facilitation offence was committed, the company had reasonable prevention procedures in place. This policy is a central plank of those prevention procedures.
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3 The company’s approach to the criminal facilitation of tax evasion
3.1 Involvement in the criminal facilitation of tax evasion exposes the company and the person facilitating the evasion to a criminal offence. It will also damage our reputation and the confidence of our clients, suppliers, and business partners.
3.2 Our position is simple: we conduct our business to the highest legal and ethical standards. We will not be party to tax evasion or the facilitation of tax evasion in any form. Such acts would damage our reputation and expose us, and our staff and representatives, to the risk of fines and imprisonment.
3.3 We take a zero-tolerance approach to tax evasion facilitation by our people and our third-party representatives. We are committed to:
3.3.1 rejecting the facilitation of tax evasion; and
3.3.2 not recommending the services of others who do not have reasonable prevention procedures in place.
3.4 Tax evasion may be more widespread in some countries and business sectors than others. In some cases, you may be told that unless we facilitate tax evasion, we will not win business. That does not matter. If we were to be involved in even one instance of tax evasion facilitation, we would have shown that we engage in such conduct. We do not.
3.5 This ethical stance is good for our business and is non-negotiable.
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4 Who can be involved in tax evasion facilitation and in what circumstances?
4.1 Tax evasion may be facilitated by our:
4.1.1 staff (employees, directors, etc.) or anyone they authorise to do things on our behalf;
4.1.2 agents, intermediaries, representatives, and any other person who performs services for the company or on our behalf.
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5 Common indicators of tax evasion facilitation
5.1 Request for payment by cash;
5.2 Overly complex payment mechanisms;
5.3 Services/goods provided to jurisdictions that do not subscribe to Common Reporting Standards;
5.4 Services/goods provided to jurisdictions that have a low OECD tax transparency rating;
5.5 Transactions involving overly complex supply chains;
5.6 Transactions involving private banking facilities; and/or
5.7 Records are incomplete or missing.
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6 Risk audit
6.1 We aim to ensure our tax evasion facilitation procedures are proportionate to the risks we face.
6.2 We have performed an audit of the risk of our organisation being exposed to tax evasion facilitation. This tax evasion facilitation prevention policy has been developed in response to the results of that audit. Where necessary, we will review our audit outcomes and make appropriate changes to this policy.
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7 Records
7.1 It is essential that we keep full and accurate records of all our financial dealings— transparency is vital. False or misleading records could be very damaging to us.
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8 Management responsibility
8.1 Victoria Hudson, Director, has overall responsibility for this policy. They are responsible for ensuring this policy is adhered to by all staff.
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9 Your responsibilities
9.1 Everyone in the organisation is responsible for:
9.1.1 Reading and being aware of the contents of this policy;
9.1.2 Complying with this policy and any related policies; and
9.1.3 Reporting cases where you know or have a reasonable suspicion that tax evasion facilitation has occurred or is likely to occur.
10 What to do if you think something is wrong
10.1 Each of us has a responsibility to speak out if we discover anything corrupt or otherwise improper occurring in relation to our business.
10.2 If you discover or suspect that tax evasion has been facilitated or may be facilitated, you must report it to a Director. You can do this anonymously.
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11 Training
11.1 All staff will receive training on this by way of a Toolbox Talk. New joiners will receive training as part of the induction process. Further training will be provided at least every two years or whenever there is a substantial change in the law or our policy and procedure.
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12 Monitoring and review
12.1 This policy will be kept under regular review and will be updated in response to changes in the law or our business practices.
13 Consequences of failing to comply
13.1 We take compliance with this policy very seriously. Failure to comply with any requirement of it may lead to disciplinary action under our procedures, and this action may result in dismissal for gross misconduct.