The Times - UK (2022-04-09)

Rishi Sunak’s wife attempted to save
his political career last night by
announcing that she would pay UK
taxes on all her overseas income.
Just over 48 hours after details of her
non-domiciled tax status were leaked,
Akshata Murty admitted that her
affairs had become a “distraction” and
the situation was not “compatible” with
her husband’s role as chancellor.
However, Murty will retain her non-
domiciled status and will continue to
benefit from India’s policy of not taxing
inheritance.
It represented a dramatic reversal of
the couple’s position. Sunak had dis-
missed criticism of his wife’s tax status
as unfounded smears and Murty
suggested she could not pay full UK
taxes because of her Indian citizenship.
In a rare personal statement, Murty
suggested she accepted that her tax
status may be perceived by the public as
giving her an unfair advantage. She said
that although she would retain her
Indian citizenship, she was proud that
her daughters were British and were
growing up in the UK.
“I understand and appreciate the
British sense of fairness and I do not
wish my tax status to be a distraction for
my husband or to affect my family,” she
said. “For this reason, I will no longer be
claiming the remittance basis for tax.
This means I will now pay UK tax on an

Steven Swinford Political Editor
Henry Zeffman
Associate Political Editor

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arising basis on all my worldwide

income, including dividends and capi-

tal gains.”

The move is an attempt to end criti-

cism of the chancellor over Murty’s

£690 million stake in Infosys, an Indian

technology giant founded by her father.

The arrangement meant she legally

avoided paying millions in UK tax but

left her husband fighting for his polit-

ical survival.

Although Murty has committed her-

self to paying UK tax on her foreign

earnings, she is not promising to pay

back tax she saved from the arrange-

ment over the past decade.

She also stands to save as much as

£400 million in inheritance tax by

retaining India as her formal “place of

domicile” under a loophole in a 1956

treaty between the UK and India.

Labour said “troubling questions” re-

mained and demanded that Murty “pay

back all the tax she saved through the

arrangement”. The couple have still not

declared where she paid tax on her divi-

dends from Infosys and whether she did

so at a lower rate than in the UK.

The Independent claimed last night

that Sunak was listed as the beneficiary

of trusts in the British Virgin Islands

and the Cayman Islands, both tax

havens. Sunak’s spokeswoman said she

did not recognise the claims.

The reversal comes after ministers

described Sunak’s position over his

wife’s tax affairs as “unsustainable”.

Boris Johnson praised Sunak as an

Continued on page 2, col 3

Sunak’s wife

will pay UK

taxes to save

his career

Murty keeps non-dom status and inheritance perk

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