Gary Lineker wins £4.9 million tax battle with HMRC

Lineker is 'pleased' with the decision

The Match of the Day host - who was taken off the air briefly after a fight over his Twitter account - was told by HM Revenue & Customs that he should have been classified as an employee of the BBC and BT Sport, rather than a freelancer.

On that basis, the authority said the 62-year-old should have paid £4.9m on income received between 2013 and 2018.

Throughout proceedings, Lineker insisted all taxes were paid on the income via a partnership set up in 2012 with his ex-wife Danielle Bux.

The case comes amid IR35 legislation which is designed to clamp down on tax avoidance by employees who charge for their services via limited companies.

On Tuesday, a tribunal found the legislation did not apply to Lineker as there were no direct contracts between him and the BBC or BT Sport.

HMRC has 56 days to appeal the decision.

Via a spokesperson, Lineker told the iNews: “I am pleased that the tribunal has confirmed that I have not failed to pay any taxes or national insurance by reason of the IR35 rules.”

Judge John Brooks found that while Gary Lineker Media (GLM), which he set up with his then-wife in 2012, was a partnership to which IR35 legislation applies, the appeal was still dismissed in full because contracts existed.

The judge said: “As a matter of law, when Mr Lineker signed the 2013 BBC Contract, the 2015 BBC Contract and the BT Sport Contract for the provision of his services, he did so as principal thereby contracting directly with the BBC and BT Sport.

“As such, the intermediaries legislation cannot apply – it is only applicable ‘where services are provided not under a contract directly between client and the worker’.

“In this case Mr Lineker’s services were provided under direct contracts with the BBC and BT Sport."

Brooks added: “Although such a conclusion might appear inconsistent with my conclusions that the intermediaries legislation can apply to partnerships… that is not the case.”

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