As of 30 September, two new criminal offences relevant to the offshore world are in force under the UK Criminal Finances Act 2017
• Failure to prevent the facilitation of UK tax evasion
• Failure to prevent the facilitation of foreign tax evasion
Five things you need to know...
Global reach – the law covers offshore and international firms as well as those in the UK
Risk – all offshore financial services providers will automatically be considered “high risk”
Extra – new procedures may be needed beyond existing measures
Unlimited – fines for breaking the law are unlimited, as is the potential reputational damage
Responsibility – liability not just for actions of employees but contractors/subsidiaries as well
Five things you need to do...
Assessment – consider additional financial crime prevention procedures, resources and skills
Review – periodic review of new measures and how well they are understood by your teams
Document – all steps needed to demonstrate that “reasonable prevention procedures” exist
Culture – a demonstrable culture of compliance in this area is critical
Seniority – directors and partners must demonstrate practical engagement on prevention in this area
