Compliance

Fresenius Kabi UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 statement

This statement is made pursuant to the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 that came into effect on the 29th October 2015.

Fresenius Kabi is a global healthcare company that specialises in lifesaving medicines and technologies for infusion, transfusion and clinical nutrition. Our products and services are used to help care for critically and chronically ill patients.

Approximately 86% of the products that we buy are purchased from within the Fresenius Kabi Group, leaving only 14% sourced from third party providers who are mainly located in the UK.

Our responsibility as a healthcare company goes beyond our business operations. Responsible and sustainable management is an integral part of our culture and our daily business.

In order to be perceived as a reliable partner of integrity by patients, customers, suppliers, government agencies and the general public in the healthcare system, it is important that we fulfil our legal and ethical responsibilities as a company.

To this end, all of our suppliers are expected to comply with the Fresenius Kabi Supplier’s Code of Conduct in all business dealings. Integral within this is adherence to the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights and observance of all applicable international and local laws, including the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015.

Fresenius Kabi will review suppliers’ compliance with the principles and requirements laid out in the Suppliers Code of Conduct and where found deficient work jointly to eliminate possible concerns.

If Fresenius Kabi becomes aware of any actions or conditions within their supply chains that are not in compliance with the Code, we reserve the right to demand corrective action measures. Moreover, we also reserve the right to terminate agreements with any supplier who does not comply with the Code.

Fresenius Kabi is committed to maintaining compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as well as the highest ethical standards as set out in its Code and in the UN Global Compact’s 10 principles.

Specific text relating to the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015 is being incorporated into supplier contracts, to reinforce adherence to its principles and compliance with its obligations and included in supplier review meetings.

Training is provided to company management and Suppliers Code of Conduct awareness is given to all relevant employees, either through direct training, e-learning or the reading of written policies and procedures that support it.

Mark Kirkup
General Manager, Operations

UK Tax Strategy

In accordance with UK legislations, Schedule 19 of Finance Act 2016, the company is publishing its tax strategy for the Year Ended 31st December 2023, which will be refreshed annually. We confirm that this strategy will apply to the following UK companies for all UK taxes:

Fresenius Kabi Limited 

Calea UK Limited 

FHC (Holdings) Limited

Fresenius Kabi Oncology plc

Approach to Tax Risk Management & Governance
We aim for our tax affairs to be compliant with UK tax legislation and the Board of Directors in the UK are committed to the delivery of tax compliance.
 
We employ the services of a professional tax advisor to prepare our Corporate Tax Computations and, Returns and to provide other services including tax technical updates and flagging new legislation to help reduce the risk of non-compliance. We also ensure that we employ appropriately qualified and experienced staff to prepare and submit relevant returns, for example VAT and PAYE.

Level of Tax Risk we are prepared to accept
Our appetite for tax risk is low and the UK Board of Directors sees compliance with tax legislation as key to managing our tax risk by using principals of reasonable.
 
Due to the size and complexity of the business there is an inherent degree of tax risk. We recognise that eliminating tax risk entirely is impossible, but we aim to manage our tax risk as far as practically possible.
 
In areas of uncertainty where tax risk arises from the complexity of tax legislation and differences in interpretation, we will seek appropriate external advice before engaging with HMRC.
 
Our approach is to aim to be compliant and understand our responsibilities with regard to tax and we will claim legitimate tax incentives, exemptions and reliefs offered by the UK Government to all tax payers.

Attitude towards Tax Planning
We will consider a range of tax outcomes based on the underlying commercial intention of any business activity or transaction that supports our business activities and the Group’s code of conduct, rather than looking for ways to aggressively avoid the payment of tax. We seek to balance the shareholders’ interest of managing business expenses, which include taxation, with ensuring that any arrangements comply with current UK tax legislation.
 
We have a responsibility to minimise our tax risk and our exposure to negative publicity through non-compliance.

Approach towards dealing with HMRC
We seek to ensure that our engagement with HMRC is professional, open and honest by having a co-operative and proactive working relationship with them. We also aim to undertake our filing requirements in a timely manner, by meeting relevant filing and payment deadlines for taxes that the company pays.