Finance Act 2009

9 (1) Where a senior accounting officer or a qualifying company becomes liable for a penalty under this Schedule— U.K.

(a) HMRC may assess the penalty, and

(b) if they do so, they must notify the officer or company liable for the penalty.

(2) An assessment of a penalty under this Schedule for a failure in respect of a financial year, or an inaccuracy in a certificate for a financial year, may not be made—

(a) more than 6 months after the failure or inaccuracy first comes to the attention of an officer of Revenue and Customs, or

(b) more than 6 years after the end of the period for filing the company's accounts for the financial year.

(3) HMRC may not assess a person who is the senior accounting officer of a company (“C”) as liable to a penalty under paragraph 4 or 5 for a financial year (“the relevant financial year”) if—

(a) at any time in the relevant financial year the person was the senior accounting officer of another company that was a member of the same group as C, and

(b) HMRC has assessed the person as liable, as the senior accounting officer of the other company, to a penalty under that paragraph for a financial year that ends on a day in the relevant financial year.

(4) HMRC may not assess a company (“C”) as liable to a penalty under paragraph 7 for a financial year (“the relevant financial year”) if—

(a) C was a member of a group at the end of that year, and

(b) HMRC has assessed another company that was a member of the same group as C at that time as liable to a penalty under that paragraph—

(i) for its financial year ending on the same day as the relevant financial year, or

(ii) if its financial year does not end on that day, for its financial year ending last before that day.