The Internal Revenue Service today highlighted its partnership with the United Kingdom’s whistleblower program, which drew upon the IRS Whistleblower Office’s expertise to quickly get established. This collaboration reinforces efforts to identify global tax evasion and strengthen cross-border compliance.
His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs program, known as the Strengthened Reward Scheme, launched in November 2025 to encourage the reporting of serious tax avoidance and evasion involving the wealthiest individuals and largest businesses.
“The collaboration between the U.S. and the UK’s whistleblower program will help deter large-scale, cross-border tax evasion,” said IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank J. Bisignano. “By working together, the two tax authorities encourage robust tax enforcement on both sides of the Atlantic and will have a far-reaching global impact in the fight against international financial fraud.”
HMRC Chief Executive JP Marks said, “I’m pleased to join the IRS in recognizing the important role that informants play in helping protect the integrity of our tax systems.” He added, “The IRS has played an important role in supporting the development of HMRC’s Strengthened Reward Scheme, and I am grateful for the close collaboration between our organizations. By working together, we can strengthen our efforts to tackle tax avoidance and evasion.”
More than ever, tax avoiders are using sophisticated methods to conceal their wrongdoings. Modern tax evasion relies on complex webs of offshore accounts, shell companies, and fraudulent transfers that are incredibly difficult for external investigators to trace. Fraudsters seek to dodge tax enforcement by creating mechanisms that are split across jurisdictions.
Whistleblowers are critical to helping tax authorities pierce this veil of secrecy. The accountants, bankers, or executives who blow the whistle and provide specific, credible intelligence, allow tax authorities to identify bad actors and ensure they fulfill their tax obligations.
As both the U.S. and UK are global financial hubs, the IRS and HMRC are committed to working with and rewarding whistleblowers for their vital contributions to global financial security and tax compliance.
The IRS and HMRC encourage individuals with specific, timely, significant, and credible information about suspected violations of tax laws to submit a report. In the U.S., visit IRS Whistleblower Office or IRS.gov/SubmitATip and in the UK, visit Reporting Serious Tax Avoidance or Evasion on GOV.UK
Examples of what whistleblowers in either country can report include:
- Undeclared foreign bank accounts and failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR).
- Hidden assets routed through foreign trusts, foundation structures, financial instruments, or anonymous holding entities in tax havens.
- Money laundering.
- Transfer pricing manipulation and illicit cross-border profit shifting by high-net-worth individuals and multinational entities.
Whistleblowers may qualify for a monetary award when their information leads to the collection of taxes or other proceeds. Whistleblowers do not need to be citizens or residents of the U.S. or UK to receive an award.
In both the U.S. and the UK, whistleblowers can receive 15% to 30% of the collected tax proceeds resulting from their original, specific, and credible information:
IRS (U.S.): Calculates awards based on total collected proceeds (tax, interest, and penalties).
HMRC (UK): Calculates awards based on collected tax alone (excluding interest and penalties) and requires a minimum tax recovery threshold of £1.5 million. There is no maximum cap on the award.
No. Whistleblowers do not need to be citizens or residents of either country. Non-residents, foreign nationals, and international corporate insiders can submit tips and claim monetary rewards as long as the tax non-compliance impacts U.S. or UK tax jurisdiction.
To HMRC (UK): You can file an anonymous report, but you forfeit eligibility for a monetary reward. To qualify for a payout, you must provide contact details.
To the IRS (U.S.): You can submit an initial tip anonymously, but to claim a financial award via IRS Form 211, your identity must be disclosed to the IRS Whistleblower Office (though it remains protected from public disclosure or the accused taxpayer under privacy laws).
The joint effort focuses on complex, high-value non-compliance, including:
Undeclared foreign bank accounts and failure to file required FBAR forms.
Assets hidden in offshore trusts, foundations, shell entities, or tax havens.
Transfer pricing manipulation and cross-border profit-shifting by multinational corporations or high-net-worth individuals.
Money laundering and fraudulent asset transfers across international borders.
In the U.S.: Submit an online report at IRS.gov/SubmitATip or file IRS Form 211 (Application for Award for Original Information) directly with the IRS Whistleblower Office.
In the UK: Use the online reporting portal by searching “Reporting Serious Tax Avoidance or Evasion” on GOV.UK.
Manoj Sharma is a Senior Writer on the banking team at Tax Assistant. He provides information on budgeting, bank accounts, the banking industry, and other related topics. Using original data and methodologies, he helps you identify the best financial institutions, accounts, and products tailored to your needs. Manoj holds a degree in Journalism and Political Science from Syracuse University. All articles are strictly reviewed and fact-checked by our panel of expert Chartered Accountants, including CA Devendra Saini, CA Nikhil Khunteta, and CA Ankit Goyal
