It has been revealed that sports presenter and former footballer Gary Lineker is caught in a £4.9 million IR35 dispute with HMRC. Recent documents show that, for over a year, HMRC has accused Lineker of being a “disguised employee” and sought to claim almost £5 million from him in income tax and National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
The HMRC claim relates to work Lineker undertook for the BBC in the tax years from 2013-2014 to 2016-2017 and work performed for BT Sport in the 2015-2016 and 2017-2018 tax years. HMRC is looking to claim more than £3.6 million for income tax covering the work, as well as over £1.3 million in NICs.
Lineker’s firm, Gary Lineker Media, denies that the work he performed for the BBC and BT was “disguised employment”. A request to amend the firm’s grounds of appeal was submitted in March 2020, but the case has suffered delays as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Currently the BBC’s highest-paid worker, Lineker is best-known for his football presenting, including his work on the BBC’s Match of the Day programme. His earnings from the BBC for the 2019-2020 financial year were £1.75 million, although he has recently agreed a pay cut of 23 per cent as part of his latest contract with the broadcaster.
Lineker’s agent, Jon Holmes, commented: “It is a question of whether he is employed by the BBC or not. Most people, once they understand employment law, would say of course he isn’t. He works for many other people.”
HMRC has been accused of engaging in a “witch hunt” of high-profile freelancers, following similar IR35 cases against celebrity TV names, including Lorraine Kelly, Kaye Adams and Eamonn Holmes.
