Mrs Tang is a midwife in the NHS. In the tax year 2007-8 she earned just under £22,000. By 2015-16 she was earning about £40,000 a year. In April 2008, the sum of £422,000 was deposited in the London branch of OCBC in an account in Mrs Tang's sole name. After that, Mrs Tang made currency trades and transferred the funds back and forth to bank accounts in Hong Kong and Singapore opened in her name or jointly with other family members. In 2017, the funds were returned to her parents-in-law in Hong Kong.
On 15 November 2013, HMRC started to open an enquiry into Mrs Tang's tax position by a letter on the basis of information received that Mrs Tang had over $900,000 in a bank account in her name (in the joint names of Mr Tang ) in Singapore. However, Mrs Tang asserts that the funds were held by her as bare trustee for family members resident in Hong Kong so that she has no personal liability for the income and gains which arose on them. HMRC take the view that the funds were held in her name and no evidence of any trust was produced.
Finally, HMRC raised discovery assessments in respect of the years 2008-9 to 2015-16 and penalties Mrs Tang for her deliberate failure to notify her liability to tax. The income tax and Capital Gains Tax assessments total £55,718.40 and the penalties total £42,135.92 which, together, amount to £97,854.32.
On 6 September 2017, the parents-in law of Mrs Tang offer a statement confirms that the capital of the fund derived from the parents-in-law's restaurant business and held in the name of Mrs Tang, which have always been, and continue to be, beneficially owned by themselves. Later, HMRC was prepared to accept a settlement for a sum considerably less than the tax and penalties. However, Mrs Tang did not accept the offer of a settlement and appealed to the FTT.