Been a contractor for almost 10 years, always made sure I’ve been outside IR35 just in case HMRC came calling. Contract reviews and so on to make sure everything is kosher.
Now that the liabilities are changing to the clients it’s funny to see the total shambles they’ve made of it.
My current client has gotten independent assessments done and everything has come back fine (well yeah, because us contractors were keeping them right over the years).
Some right horror stories coming out though, people being told they’re in when they’re should clearly be out, blanket assessments and the like.
Contractors and clients both sticking their heads in the sand over this, total Pandora’s box could be opened over historical abuse of IR35, when people are seen to be going PAYE with nothing else changing. Yes HMRC have said they won’t investigate previous engagements, but the same engagement with that change won’t be off their radar.
And it’s all at a time when UK plc least needs it, but you can be sure everyone blames Brexit when everything goes Pete Tong in the next couple of years due to projects across industry failing spectacularly, jobs being outsourced to India etc.
Will cost HMRC billions.