About us
UCL is one of the world’s leading universities, with high expectations for financial reporting, governance and control across a large and complex organisation.
UCL’s tax function is responsible for ensuring UCL meets its tax compliance obligations across the Group, including VAT, Corporation Tax, Employment Taxes and Customs. The team manages relationships with HMRC, oversees the submission of all tax returns, and ensures compliance with UK tax legislation and relevant international requirements. The function plays a central role in protecting UCL from tax risk, maintaining strong controls, and supporting the university’s wider strategic objectives.
About the role
This is a senior tax compliance role within one of the UK’s largest and most complex organisations, with annual income of c£2.5bn and operations spanning multiple jurisdictions.
You will lead all aspects of tax compliance across UCL and its subsidiaries. This includes direct accountability for VAT, Corporation Tax, Employment Taxes and Customs, ensuring full compliance with UK legislation and relevant international requirements.
You will take ownership of critical compliance processes. This includes VAT returns and partial exemption, PAYE Settlement Agreement, corporation tax submissions, and oversight of withholding tax and customs obligations. You will ensure these are delivered accurately, on time, and supported by strong documentation and controls.
The role requires you to operate at scale. You will work across a highly devolved structure, embedding consistent processes and strengthening compliance frameworks across faculties, departments and entities.
You will also act as a key point of contact for HMRC and auditors. You will provide clear technical advice, resolve complex issues, and respond to audit scrutiny with well evidenced positions.
Alongside delivery, you will identify control gaps and drive improvements in processes, data quality and governance. This will support UCL’s wider focus on financial control, compliance and risk management.
A full job description is attached to this advert. The role is initially a fixed term contract for 12 months.
About you
You are a qualified tax specialist or accountant with deep experience in UK tax compliance across large and complex organisations.
You bring strong technical expertise across VAT, including partial exemption and capital goods scheme, as well as corporation tax and employment taxes such as PSA, PAYE and NIC. You understand HMRC requirements in detail and have managed end to end compliance processes.
You have operated in environments with scale and complexity. You are comfortable navigating devolved structures, multiple stakeholders and varied activities across different entities or jurisdictions.
You focus on delivery. You take ownership of deadlines and ensure submissions are accurate, well supported and compliant. You can review and challenge work, identify risks, and resolve issues quickly.
You also understand controls. You can assess where processes are weak, put improvements in place, and ensure documentation stands up to audit scrutiny.
You communicate clearly with both technical and non technical stakeholders. You can explain tax positions, influence behaviour, and build awareness of compliance requirements across the organisation.
You have strong systems awareness, ideally including ERP systems. Experience of Oracle R12 would be beneficial.
Experience in higher education, charity or not for profit environments would help, but is not essential.
Please read our Job Description, paying particular attention to the Essential and Desirable criteria, and ensure these are covered in your application.
What we offer
- 41 days’ holiday (27 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays, 6 closure days)
- Option to purchase 5 additional days’ annual leave
- Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
- Cycle to work scheme, season ticket loan, and immigration loan
- Relocation support for eligible posts
- On-site nursery and gym
- Enhanced maternity, paternity, and adoption pay
- Staff Support Service (employee assistance programme)
- Discounted medical insurance
Full details: UCL Rewards and Benefits .
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong.
We particularly encourage applications from candidates underrepresented in UCL’s workforce, including those from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled people, and – for Grade 9 and 10 roles – women.
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