HMRC’s figures show the High Net Worth Unit (HNWU) brought in £268m of additional revenue in 2013-14 compared to £222m the previous year, and £200m in 2011-12.

The HNWU focuses on those with a net worth of £20m or more who make up the 6,200 wealthiest individuals in the UK more revenue this year. Their tax affairs are overseen by a customer relationship manager who holds discussions with individuals on the taxes they owe.  This group of taxpayers collectively pay £3bn to £4bn a year in personal income and Capital Gains Tax.

The unit was set up in 2009 to target high-earning individuals with assets of more than £20m. In the past these people were dealt with as part of a broader scope team dealing with tax issues for anyone earning £100m or more.

An HMRC spokesperson told Accountancy Live: ‘We have built a team of people dedicated to high net worth individuals; they can build a detailed picture of these taxpayers. Their financial affairs are very complicated and it did not make sense to put them in with small business owners with totally different tax issues.’

HMRC also reports an increase in wealthy individuals filing their tax returns on time. Since the HNWU has been in existence, the number of outstanding tax returns has reduced from 11.9% to 3.4%. The department says a total of 96.4% of wealthy individuals now file their returns online – an increase of 10% in four years.

Additional revenue collected by the High Net Worth Unit:

The report is available here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/issue-briefing-dealing-with-the-tax-affairs-of-wealthy-individuals/how-we-deal-with-wealthy-individuals