IPT08100 - IPT audit assurance: roles and responsibilities

Everyone involved in IPT is part of a substantial network including yourself, colleagues within your office, Customer Compliance Managers (CCMs), Senior Tax Specialists, Specialist Audit Staff, Operational Accountants, Anti Avoidance Advisers, Deductions & Financial Services Team, BTOps (see IPT01400), the Solicitor’s Office, and CS&TD.

The Departmental insurance community, that is to say those parts of HMRC that have major responsibility for insurers and their VAT and IPT affairs, contains four major components. Those are as follows.

Regional offices

Officers based at various offices across the UK undertake the vital front-line work of visiting, carrying out other assurance work and generally dealing directly with insurers. Some may be former LIPTOs with a specific interest in IPT, while some may be responsible for large businesses and will deal with both IPT and VAT. It is these staff that ultimately have the responsibility for the casework and delivering the Department’s assurance objectives.

Unit of Operational Expertise (UoE)

Within Large Business, insurance staff provide resources to support the work of the Insurance UoE, which provides a number of services including:

  • intelligence gathering and dissemination;
  • co-ordinating specialised training;
  • national insurance helpline (for staff);
  • national projects.

Deductions & Financial Services Team

The Deductions & Financial Services Team is responsible for determining and disseminating the Department’s interpretation of the legislation that governs IPT, providing guidance on administrative policy relating to liability, valuation, apportionment, de minimis and registration issues. The team is also responsible for liaising with the various bodies and associations that represent the insurance industry and overseas tax administrators. However they are not responsible for dealing directly with individual insurers and brokers. (The Team also has responsibility for the VAT exemption for insurance).

Assessment policy is the responsibility of the Tax Administration Advice Team.