PwC seeks refund on Lehmans' tax

PricewaterhouseCoopers is taking on several tax authorities in a bid to claw back corporation tax paid by Lehman Brothers European arm, before its market collapse last year.

The firm is hoping to recover ‘a material sum’ by getting corporate tax refunds on the back of tax losses sustained after Lehman Brothers collapse. Joint administrator Tony Lomas confirmed talks were continuing with HMRC discussions a priority. ‘We are pursuing recovery of a material sum of UK tax paid in the recent past,’ he said.

Confidentiality issues meant Lomas could not elaborate on the amount being sought or the tax jurisdictions that the administrators were talking to.

However, the firm said there were a number of issues that hinged on getting the green light from HM Revenue & Customs.

It is currently locked in talks with the taxman to get the issues resolved, with the corporate tax refund being a priority. In its six-month report to creditors, PwC said: ‘Various tax-related aspects will potentially be affected or influenced by HMRC including, in particular, successfully obtaining a refund of corporation tax using LBIE tax losses.

‘The tax function has met and spoken regularly with senior inspectors within HMRC to reach quick agreement on matters that could potentially deplete the value of the estate or delay the tax reclaim process.’

The firm said it had put procedures in place for filing the corporation tax returns needed to obtain the refunds, but there were a large number of these to be drawn up and the process was highly complicated.

HMRC said it was unable to comment for confidentiality reasons.