Property mogul could lose £5.5 million tax break because he keeps coming back to UK for his domestic goddess wife’s great food

A retired millionaire property mogul could lose a £5.5million tax break because his domestic goddess wife’s ‘great cooking’ brought him back to the UK too often, the High Court has heard.

James Glyn has insisted he was resident in Monaco when he received a £24million dividend from selling off his family property portfolio ten years ago.

But HM Revenue and Customs want him to pay back £5.5million after arguing he spent too much time in London to qualify for a huge tax break.

At the heart of their case are the 15 dinner parties Mr Glyn is said to have attended at home in London’s wealthy St John’s Wood in the 2005/2006 tax year.

Tax officials claim that his wife, Sarah, a high-powered charity chief, is legendary with family and friends for her sumptuous home cooking.

They argue that Mr Glyn’s regular returns to London for her traditional Friday night suppers – and some Jewish festivals – prove he never really left the UK and is subject to the full gamut of British taxes.

Two years ago, a tax tribunal handed victory to the businessman, ruling that he had made his home in the tax haven principality of Monaco.

But HMRC refused to accept it and have fought to prove that Mr Glyn remained a UK resident during the crucial 2005/06 tax year.

And now a High Court judge has ruled that the tribunal on his tax status was wrong.

Mr Justice David Richards said Mr Glyn had flown back to the UK 22 times during the tax year.

Some of his visits were for weddings, funerals, birthdays, charity events or to celebrate Jewish festivals.

But he always stayed at the family home, a townhouse in Circus Road, St John’s Wood, and was in London 15 times to enjoy his wife’s Friday night suppers.

She had a reputation as a ‘great cook and hostess’ and the traditional sabbath meals were a central feature of the family’s life.

The judge said it was ‘entirely possible’ for an individual to have more than one country of residence.
And the tribunal had taken into account irrelevant factors when it found that Mr Glyn had made a ‘distinct break’ with Britain.

The businessman pointed out that he had spent only about 65 days in Britain during the tax year, whereas non-residents are normally allowed 91 days under HMRC rules.

But the judge said that did not necessarily mean that he had ‘sufficiently loosened’ his family, social and business links with the UK to qualify for tax exemption.

His retention and continued use of the St John’s Wood house was ‘a very important factor’, said the judge.

And the fact that Mr Glyn had ‘metered’ the time he spent in the UK and felt ‘downright misled’ by the 91-day rule could not be decisive.

HMRC’s appeal was allowed and the dispute was sent back for re-hearing by a fresh tribunal.

Mr Glyn was described as a thoughtful and ‘not particularly extrovert’ man who ‘devours’ reference books and loves playing Scrabble.

He found himself suddenly at the helm of the family’s business at the tender age of 21 when his father died prematurely.

His ‘meticulous and highly organised’ mind – when combined with the ‘more extovert’ style of his wife and brother, Stuart – led to phenomnal success for the family business.

The couple filled their home with furniture and fittings worth up to half-a-million pounds and brought up their children, Toby and Georgina, there.

But Mr Glyn described his ‘hard-working daily life as drudgery’ and said that, by 2005, he had had enough.

He said he had never much liked his job and believed he had enough money to retire.

His brother set about selling off the family’s property holdings and, in May 2005, Mr Glyn received a £24.59 million dividend.

Revenue and Customs has ever since fought to prove that £5.5 million in income tax is due.

Mr Glyn returned to the UK permanently in 2010 and still lives in the Circus Road house.