From Possibility to Impact: Building Tax & Legal Skills and Services for an AI-Native Future

AI requires responsible, innovative and ethical leadership. During the year our Chief Digital Officer (Deloitte UK's Chief AI Officer from 1 June 2026) Hayley McKelvey worked closely with a dedicated and experienced leadership group including our Digital Innovation leader (James Whyman) and Digital Service Leaders to build and deploy trustworthy applications of AI for tax and legal professionals.

Business Activation and Client Service

Our Tax & Legal AI activation team have equipped our people with the right productivity assistants which include MS 365 CoPilot and Gemini Enterprise. We have also developed numerous tax and legal advisory use cases using Legora AI, merging technology and human professional judgement to provide expert advice to clients.

Our people, careers & professional development

We commit to giving our people the AI skills and confidence to succeed . This starts on day 1 at our Tax & Legal Analyst Academy - our new analysts develop digital fluency, experiment with the technology and understand the importance of professional use of AI.

To provide an advanced pathway for our people, we have launched the Deloitte Tax & Legal Makers programme. The initial cohort of 100 are getting access to advanced training and technology with the support of our Data Science and pro-development teams.

In addition to digital fluency for all practitioners, emerging roles are creating new career pathways. Professionals are increasingly combining tax or legal knowledge with product thinking, technical know-how and innovation. The success of our secondment programme to our Data & AI Team launched last year has allowed Directors to develop these skills through immersive learning and bring this back to their teams to enhance how we serve our clients.

For our Senior Leaders, a number of Tax & Legal Partners from across the business have completed a flagship AI Leaders Programme at MIT with another cohort enrolling this summer. Learnings from the MIT AI Leaders Programme have been actively embedded across all grades through working groups and dedicated AI days.

In FY26 we promoted 1,088 colleagues and welcomed over 825 new joiners, including 39 school leavers (our BrightStart programme), 209 Industrial placement / summer vacation students, 242 graduates and 336 experienced hires.

Learning and development

Our investment in learning this year centred on three priorities: technical excellence, digital adoption and professional skills. The scale of activity reflects our commitment to maintaining the highest quality professionals for us and our clients.

This year our UK tax professionals based in India who support on the delivery of UK tax compliance attained the Deloitte Diploma in UK and International Taxation. Over 1,000 colleagues attended our flagship development programmes:

People & Purpose

Our People and Purpose strategy is built around three pillars: maximising people potential, enhancing the people experience and a relentless focus on inclusion.

On potential, we invested in the quality of leadership - setting clear expectations for People Leaders and providing targeted training and wellbeing support. On experience, we embedded AI fluency programs for everyone and paid particular attention to feedback we receive from engagement sessions and surveys to improve the experience for all our people.

On inclusion, we asked all of our Partners to set specific inclusion objectives in FY26, focused on career sponsorship and equity of opportunity. Our Ethnicity Action Group continued its targeted interventions, with strong outcomes in Ethnic Minority promotions at Director and Partner level. We actively champion and sponsor our 12 Deloitte Diversity networks.

As we move into FY27, our ambition is for our people to feel valued, supported and proud to build their careers in Tax & Legal - as confident, tech-enabled professionals.

Tax policy

Our UK Tax Policy Map tracks developments across more than 70 policy areas. It provides a practical reference point for businesses and professionals navigating this complex landscape.

We are committed to contributing evidence and technical observations intended to help policymakers develop laws that achieve their objectives, are clear in their application and do not create undue burdens for taxpayers. Our contribution includes written responses to public consultations and calls for evidence, participation in HMRC and professional body forums, and engagement with government stakeholders. This engagement is increasingly important as businesses face a rising compliance burden - a theme reflected in our 2026 Global Tax Policy Survey, which found that tax complexity is the biggest challenge for global tax leaders.

Professional bodies

Deloitte continued its long-standing support for the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) in 2026. The CIOT is the UK's leading professional body for tax professionals, established by Royal Charter and representing more than 20,000 members, including over 1,000 Deloitte professionals.

Beyond our membership, Deloitte supports the CIOT's mission to advance tax education and promote a more efficient and less complex tax system. Deloitte professionals contribute significant volunteer time sitting on the CIOT's technical, educational and professional standards committees, working groups and its Council.

During the year, a key area of focus was supporting the review and redesign of the CIOT's professional qualifications to reflect the evolving demands of the tax profession. This work helps the CIOT’s qualifications continue to uphold internationally recognised standards of technical expertise and professional integrity.

Tax transparency

Our Tax Policy Survey identified that the top theme impacting business was transparency and reporting with 84% of respondents expected more public tax disclosures in the next two to three years. A useful window onto one aspect of the challenge is shown by Public Country-by-Country Reporting.

Conferences and Client Development Programmes

Photo of a Guest Speaker and Andy Coticelli, Partner & Tax and Legal Client and Markets Leader at Deloitte Private, at the Tax Leader’s Conference 2025.

Delegates gather at the EMEA Next Generation Chief Legal Officers Academy

Our society relies on businesses and individuals engaging with the tax and legal systems in a responsible manner. Our clients trust us to provide the tax and legal advice and compliance services they need to meet this obligation.

Tax Obligations

Our UK teams oversee the management of global tax obligations - including corporate income tax, VAT, transfer pricing, withholding tax, financial statements and country-by-country reporting - through our Intela client collaboration platform. We submit thousands of personal income tax returns annually on behalf of clients with internationally mobile employees and UK personal clients, primarily using proprietary tax software.

All Deloitte partners and employees who advise on UK tax matters are committed to upholding the reputation of the profession and adhere to the principles set out in the Professional Conduct in Relation to Taxation, jointly developed by the UK's leading tax and accountancy bodies.

Legal

Our legal teams have supported clients in staying ahead of new obligations and regulations - from scoping and implementation support to ongoing compliance management using the latest technology. As the regulatory landscape continues to evolve, including with new digital regulations and the Employment Rights Bill, we have provided business solutions built on legal excellence.

Personal Taxes: Helping Clients Prepare for MTD

In FY26, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD) went live - fundamentally changing the way sole traders and individual landlords interact with HMRC. The new regime requires digital record-keeping, quarterly reporting and replaces the self-assessment tax return. Around 3 million taxpayers are affected in the first three tax years, with 860,000 subject to new obligations from 6 April 2026.

First announced in 2015 and described at the time as "the end of the annual tax return", MTD proved significantly more complex for the government to deliver than anticipated. We engaged with HMRC at every stage of the consultation process, helping to identify problematic fact patterns and potential unintended consequences.

Supporting UK Trade

Our work supports numerous drivers of growth and productivity.

In FY26 our Global Trade Bureau facilitated customs declarations in respect of over 350,000 import / export flows with a combined value of over £14 billion and associated taxes and duties of over £950 million.

Our team continue to support clients to realise duty reclaim opportunities in FY26 with circa £20m of claims being processed through to HMRC, allowing clients to continue to benefit both prospectively and retrospectively from the various trade agreements that the UK has with international partners, which are designed to encourage and reduce the costs of international trade.

This work sits alongside supporting clients in the UK/EU to navigate significant legislative changes, designed to modernise customs code, from changes to the rules & taxation of e-commerce businesses and future developments to customs law under the new Union Customs Code.

Our work and charitable contribution is actively shaping a more effective societal response to crucial issues like inequality, migration and climate change.

Migration

Deloitte UK participated in the second United Nations International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) in New York through the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) business delegation. Bringing together governments, United Nations agencies, employers and civil society, the forum reviewed progress on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and explored the future direction of international migration policy.

As a member of the IOE Business Advisory Group, Jurga McCluskey, Head of Immigration, Deloitte UK, represented the employer perspective throughout the forum. Jurga was invited to speak on behalf of the business community at a UN ministerial roundtable alongside senior government ministers, UN officials and international organisations, contributing to discussions on legal migration pathways, skills recognition and ethical recruitment.

During the forum Deloitte's immigration practice directly engaged with policymakers and business leaders on the issues shaping the future of global mobility - including labour shortages, workforce planning, legal migration pathways and the increasing role of technology and data in migration systems.

TaxAid

Deloitte continued its relationship with TaxAid in FY26, providing volunteer advisers to support individuals who cannot afford professional tax help, as well as financial support and a part-time secondee. In FY26 our team of volunteers helped 107 TaxAid beneficiaries, resulting in over £1.3 million of tax refunds and remitted tax debt. 

Kevin Nicholson, Chair of Trustees at TaxAid, reflects on what the relationship with Deloitte has meant for the charity and its beneficiaries:

"TaxAid is a small charity that helps over 20,000 people a year to solve their tax problems when they have nowhere else to turn and cannot afford to pay for advice. Our beneficiaries are often in crisis - with mental and other health issues, debt and bereavement. The work of the charity helps change lives.

"Deloitte has been a major supporter of the charity over a number of years, both financially and through practical help and advice. Over 2025/26 Deloitte helped the charity develop a new ambitious strategy to increase the number of people we help, provided consulting advice and practical help in modernising our use of technology, and offered wider support across the charity's work.

"The leadership team at Deloitte are always available to help us access the enormous resources of the firm and we are delighted to have senior retired partners serving on the Board as Trustees - giving their time even after they have left the firm.

"But we are also grateful for the hundreds of hours provided by volunteers from Deloitte, many of whom are relatively junior tax consultants, who use their tax skills to directly help our beneficiaries - working with them to untangle their tax problems and help them to move on with their lives. They gain a unique experience of directly making a difference to people in crisis through using the skills they have developed at the firm.

"The quality of the people at Deloitte and the breadth of support has made an enormous difference in helping the charity to change the lives of our beneficiaries."

During the year our Deloitte volunteers completed our 100th case since relaunching the volunteering programme in FY25 - a milestone that reflects the sustained commitment of our people to giving meaningful support to those who need it most. The case study below, prepared by TaxAid, tells the story of our 100th case and illustrates what that support can mean in practice.

VAT on Public EV Charging: Charge My Street Ltd v HMRC

EV drivers charging at home pay the 5% reduced rate of VAT, while those using public charge points are charged VAT at 20%. Charge My Street Ltd (CMS), a not-for-profit community benefit society based in Lancaster, asked for Deloitte’s help putting forward its case that the disparity of VAT rates should end. Deloitte acted on a pro-bono basis for CMS and identified that existing VAT legislation already provides a statutory basis for the 5% rate to apply to public EV charging, provided the electricity supplied to a single customer at the same premises does not exceed 1,000 kWh per month - a threshold that, in practice, would be extremely difficult for any individual EV driver to breach.

With Deloitte's assistance, CMS made a claim and submitted a ruling request to clarify the VAT position, both of which were rejected by HMRC. CMS lodged an appeal, heard in October 2025, and the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) delivered a clear win for the taxpayer - a judgment that received substantial attention in the national press and automotive industry publications.

The judgment opens material reclaim opportunities across the supply chain- for charge point operators, app providers, employers with on-site chargers and site owners. 

Contributing to the Green Transition: Skilled Talent for a Sustainable Future

Project Greenery was a collaborative pro-bono initiative jointly funded by Deloitte and Beamery, with each organisation contributing £100,000 to Talent Beyond Boundaries (TBB), who help displaced individuals find safe migration routes through employment.

TBB's ambition is to support around 10,000 displaced individuals by 2035. Our input helped them understand the opportunities and potential barriers for displaced talent considering a move to the UK, and their technology requirements - including by developing a proof-of-concept that enhances their approach to identifying job opportunities for displaced talent.

Having concluded a comprehensive research phase - drawing on desktop research and interviews across the public, private and third sectors - the findings were brought together in a research report issued earlier this financial year. The report identified critical gaps across several industries, including energy, construction and infrastructure, where domestic supply alone cannot meet demand, and set out considerations - including targeted training and development - required before displaced talent can access those opportunities.

The findings have supported TBB's ongoing discussions with government and industry as they work to develop immigration strategies that enable safe routes for people seeking asylum. 

Ensuring Fair Pay for Workers

Against a backdrop of increases in both the national minimum wage and the number of minimum wage jobs - and the continued complexity of the rules - many employers remain at risk of inadvertently paying workers incorrectly. This risk is particularly acute given that there are now more minimum wage jobs in very large firms than in micro firms.

During FY26, our Fair Pay team advised clients on national minimum wage and holiday pay compliance in respect of over 460,000 workers. The team worked to identify and address errors in holiday and sick pay calculations, supporting the remediation of historical underpayments and helping clients strengthen payroll controls to prevent recurrence.

We have also advised some of the largest global businesses on equal pay and pay transparency across Europe, helping them prepare for the introduction of the EU Pay Transparency Directive - which introduces new obligations for employers in EU member states, aimed at bolstering equal pay protection and reducing the gender pay gap.

In addition, pensions specialists in our Fair Pay team have supported clients with automatic enrolment compliance in relation to over 100,000 workers, helping employers understand their workplace pension duties, assess worker eligibility and correct inadvertent process and contribution errors.