The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) and false self-employment

The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) is a tax deduction scheme that operates in the construction sector. CIS has been condemned by construction union UCATT as “the main facilitator of false self-employment”. Falsely declaring someone to be self-employed instead of operating PAYE produces a tax and national insurance saving. CIS is operated by the organisation that makes the payments, but the tax rate deducted depends on the registered employment status of the worker.