Michael Stefan Duma & Anor v The Commissioners for HMRC
Decision date: 12 February 2026
Neutral citation: [2026] UKFTT 262 (TC)
Overall AI summary confidence: high
Short overview
This short overview is intended to summarise the case, issues and outcome so far as they are supported by the judgment.
AI confidence in this short overview: high
HMRC issued Notices of Requirement (NORs) in April 2023 seeking security for VAT and PAYE/NIC from Influence Network Ltd and its two directors. The First-tier Tribunal held that it has full appellate jurisdiction on PAYE/NIC NOR appeals and that NORs should be limited to securing estimated future liabilities, not pre-existing arrears; it therefore varied the company PAYE/NIC NORs to future liability figures and set aside the NORs issued to the individual directors in light of subsequent insolvency and their inability to pay. The directors' appeals against copies of the company's VAT NOR were struck out for lack of jurisdiction.
Ratio decidendi
This summary is intended to identify the ratio decidendi, meaning the legal reasons for deciding and the binding part of the decision.
AI confidence in this ratio decidendi summary: medium
The Tribunal treated regulation 97V(5) as conferring full appellate powers on it in PAYE/NIC NOR appeals — allowing it to confirm, vary or set aside and to re-make requirements — and proceeded to limit security to protect estimated future tax liabilities, holding that requiring security for pre-existing arrears was unreasonable and inappropriate in NOR proceedings.
Obiter dicta
This summary is intended to identify obiter dicta, meaning observations made by the way that were not necessary to deciding the case and are not binding.
AI confidence in this obiter dicta summary: medium
The Tribunal observed that HMRC decision-makers may properly rely on Companies House entries when deciding whom to target with NORs and are not required to carry out detailed enquiries into an individual’s role before issuing a NOR; it also noted that LinkedIn entries carry limited evidential weight compared with formal registers.