Following organisational changes within HMRC, Jim Harra CB has today been appointed as HMRC’s Tax Assurance Commissioner. Jim takes over from Edward Troup who is relinquishing the tax assurance role now that he is Executive Chair with wider responsibility for HMRC.

With his wealth of tax expertise and experience, Jim is well placed to oversee the assurance and dispute governance arrangements that allow Parliament and the public to be confident that HMRC secures the right tax under the law when resolving tax disputes. Jim does not directly engage with taxpayers to discuss their specific tax liabilities, nor is he responsible for the HMRC operational units that manage taxpayers’ compliance.

The tax assurance role was one of the changes introduced in 2012 to strengthen HMRC’s governance and assurance of tax disputes.