Sir James Dyson is relocating control of his highly profitable technology empire from Malta to the UK, according to media reports in Britain.

The Mail on Sunday reported that recently filed accounts for Dyson James, a key UK subsidiary, showed that the company was to be restructured this year to bring it back under UK control.

Ownership of the iconic bagless vacuum cleaner manufacturer was transferred to a Malta-based company owned by Mr Dyson in 2009.

Although he has consistently declined to comment on the reasons for this, it was widely considered to be a measure to pay less tax. The Mail on Sunday reported that Dyson also declined to comment last weekend on the decision to return to the UK.

In response to questions sent by this newspaper to the company’s press office in London, a spokesman would only say: “Dyson is owned by a UK company which is wholly owned by James Dyson. It paid over £100 million in tax last year.”

Technology entrepreneur Sir James Dyson. Photo: Eva Rinaldi

In 2009, it was reported that the vacuum cleaner entrepreneur sold his business to Clear Cover Ltd, a company that he owns, which is incorporated in Malta.

The following year he sold the business again, this time to another Maltese company owned by him, Dark Cover Ltd. This company’s registered address with the Malta Financial Services Authority is at Tower Business Centre in Swatar.

The annual accounts of the Dyson James Group Ltd for 2011, which are accessible online, show that the immediate parent company was Beeswax Holdings UK Ltd, a company incorporated in the UK.

At that date (December 2011) Beeswax Holdings UK Limited was a wholly owned subsidiary of Dark Cover Ltd, a company incorporated in Malta. The ultimate controlling party was Sir James Dyson by virtue of his controlling interest in the shares of Dark Cover Ltd.