Claims in a social media video that the British government is tracking taxpayers who travel overseas more than three times a year have been rejected as a fake by the UK's tax authority, HM Revenue and Customs.
The video has been circulated widely in the Middle East, causing alarm among British nationals overseas and UK residents.
It claims that from August 4, a new branch of HMRC and the Home Office – called the Mobility Oversight Unit – will check whether a person’s employment status and tax record match their lifestyle.
This is part of an “enhanced customs monitoring” programme to tackle benefit fraud and tax evasion, the video and other related social media posts claim.
HMRC said the information contained in the video was false. “This video is disinformation, designed to cause undue alarm and fear. Anyone wanting information on rules around taxation should go to gov.uk or seek advice from a tax professional,” an HMRC spokesperson said.
Many social media users commented under the video that the information was false, but that did not stop it being widely shared.
Fact-checking charity Full Fact traced the video back to a TikTok account, where the post had been shared more than 66,000 times and liked by 57,200 accounts.
The video claimed the information was first reported by The Guardian, but there was no evidence of this on the newspaper’s website.
Full Fact added that while there are existing restrictions on the length of travel for people claiming benefits, the system...
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