Tax
Barclays pays corporation tax, employment tax and VAT running into £billions every year. So if you want to test your head for figures on the most complex structures and legislative provisions, you’ve come to the right place. Beyond the impressive wealth of business experience you gain, you’ll also study for the world-respected ACA (Chartered Accountancy) qualification, putting you in elite company for the rest of your career.
It’s the job of the Tax team to ensure Barclays pays the right amount of tax while complying with complex tax legislation and regulations around the world. As well as providing regular forecasting and analysis, we’re also here to advise the business on the tax implications of their strategic decisions, acquisitions and disposals. There are over 200 of us worldwide, with around 130 based at our Global Headquarters in Canary Wharf, in teams covering the full spectrum of taxes.
The Barclays Tax team is divided into three principal areas:
Risk and Compliance
This team has a broad remit. On the compliance side, they manage the corporation tax compliance for all of the Group’s business lines. This includes optimising the Group’s position with respect to the offset of profits, losses and foreign taxes and managing Barclays’ relationship with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). On the risk side, this team monitors and manages the Group’s exposure to tax risk, including specialised areas such as assessing the tax impact of Treasury transactions (capital issuances, securitsations and hedging).
You will need to build good technical skills to understand the wide variety of issues you will come across and how they are treated for tax purposes. You will also need to build relationships with a number of stakeholders, from internal business functions to HMRC.
Forecasting, Planning and Reporting
Our Group-wide half year and year end reporting disclosures come from this team. They are also responsible for forecasting the Group’s effective tax rate, understanding the drivers behind it and reporting to the Board. The team works closely with the various business planning teams. From their in-depth knowledge of the business, they also identify and drive the implementation of tax planning initiatives around the world.
You will need a good understanding of Barclays’ business, an eye for detail and sound team working skills to deliver good quality information to senior stakeholders.
Advisory
There are a number of teams covering different tax specialisms that make up the advisory side of Barclays Tax.
Personal taxes – the Wealth and Employment tax teams deal with everything relating to individuals, from employment tax matters to the tax implications of products offered to Barclays Retail and Wealth customers.
Operational taxes – these are taxes on the customers of the bank, such as withholding taxes and tax deducted from interest at source. The Operational tax team deals with the collection of these taxes and ensures that Barclays complies with the reporting and disclosure requirements of the relevant tax authorities.
Indirect taxes – the VAT Teams deals with all aspects of Barclays’ Indirect tax position, from managing the VAT compliance and relationship with HMRC, through to advising on complex transactions on a global basis.
Corporation tax – there are various teams that advise on the tax aspects of particular areas both in the UK and overseas, such as investment and retail banking, Barclays Corporate and Wealth activities, planning and transfer pricing considerations. The mergers and acquisitions team ensures transactions are structured in a tax efficient manner, working with a number of different functions in a fast paced environment.
You will need strong analytical and communication skills to get to the root of issues quickly and explain them clearly to stakeholders. You will also become accustomed to challenging and influencing increasing senior colleagues.
