Unregulated accountants - let HMRC know your thoughts

PhilHallAAT

As AAT has said since plans were first announced, we believe that the Government’s isolated proposals for unregulated tax advisers and accountants to hold professional indemnity insurance (PII) are wholly inadequate.

Instead Government should adopt AAT’s longstanding recommendation that anyone offering paid-for tax advice or accountancy services should be compelled to be a member of a relevant professional body in the same way that is already required for nurses, doctors, solicitors, architects and many other professions.

Unlike the present situation, this would mean any unregulated agents would have to:

• be appropriately qualified
• undertake and evidence regular Continuing Professional Development
• hold PII
• be subject to professional bodies complaints and disciplinary processes
• be subject to ongoing monitoring and review
• be regulated by an OPBAS regulated regulator for money laundering purposes and
• follow Professional Conduct in Relation to Taxation (PCRT) requirements.

Evidence gathered this year demonstrates that AAT’s proposal is backed by 63% of the public, 78% of MPs and 93% of AAT members.

If you would like to respond to the consultation yourself, you have until 15 June 2021 to do so.

Alternatively, you can email your thoughts directly to HMRC at: taxadviceconsultation@hmrc.gov.uk

douglasstroud

What a load of rubbish!
Yes I agree that all accountants should have PII, but why regulated by professional bodies? Oh yes they want your money
Does being regulated mean you are a better accountant than someone who is not? No
You only need to read the forums to see the questions that are asked by qualified/regulated accountants to realise that it means absolutely nothing to whether you can do the work or not.
Just my view as a qualified but only regulated through HMRC for MLR accountant.

PhilHallAAT

The facts speak for themselves, HMRC has confirmed that two thirds of all agent related complaints are about the one third of the sector who are unregulated. Being regulated doesn’t solve all problems but it does make them far less likely. Unregulated agents cost the taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds a year - £600m in incorrect claims for R&D tax relief alone.

Being a member of a professional body also means that agents are also subject to monitoring and review and that the public has the additional protection of access to complaints and disciplinary processes if things do go wrong.