for non payment of tax as self employed. He has told my friend that as she is still his wife, she can also be liable to pay the debt by selling the matrimonial home. He was on mortgage BUT not on the Deeds of the house. Is this true? Can she be made to sell the house to pay her estranged husband's tax debt????
2007-03-05 23:37:33 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ United Kingdom
Quick answer is she can not be forced to sell the house - however the debt will reduce the available 'pot' of assets that will be divided between them when they Divorce - and it is quite possible that the house will have to be sold then to free up some cash.
(Funny how ex-wives seem to think they can get 100% of their (ex) husbands House and 50% of his Business but not 50% of his debts ...)
2007-03-05 23:47:55 · answer #1 · answered by Steve B 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First and foremost the debt belongs to the husband, the Revenue will not chase your friend.
The Revenue can however, place a charge against any assets he may own, and this could include the house. You will have to advise your friend to seek legal advice re this.
The Revenue will have no reason to contact your friend at all, the debt would be dealt with solely with the husband. It would be the husband that would force the sale of the house if he is able to to raise monies to clear his debt.
Best advice I can think of is to have a session with a Citizen Advice Advisor, or better still a solicitor, and the sooner the better.
2007-03-08 08:50:59 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I doubt it very much, especially as his name is not on the deeds. It could be that if they are still maried she COULD be made liable but I suspect that as the bill is his from his earnings a court would not make a woman homeless over it. Besides, £12,000 is actually not a great deal of money so they will probably just agree to take it from his future earnings.
Good question though!
2007-03-05 23:42:23 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
If he's paid for the house (or contributed towards it) it doesn't matter if his name isn't on the deeds - he owns part of it, and if he needs to sell his assets then it could be bye-bye house.
She needs to try and get divorced before the tax-man comes along with his axe - then she'll have a much better chance of saving the house
2007-03-05 23:41:39 · answer #4 · answered by mark 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think this is a question that you need to put to a solicitor not us. the solicitor will be able to answer, as far as I am aware the spouse is not liable for her partners debts.. but you still need to get her to check
2007-03-05 23:41:18 · answer #5 · answered by uniquewoman 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Absolutely not...your friend needs to seek legal advice as soon as possible. Contact the Citizens Advice Bureau for further help.
http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/
2007-03-05 23:53:47 · answer #6 · answered by sarch_uk 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
ha ha thats what you get for not paying your taxes! i wish people would...it would make my job a lot easier!
2007-03-05 23:40:23 · answer #7 · answered by princess 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋