Taxes Management Act 1970

[F1 93 Failure to make return for income tax and capital gains tax. U.K.

(1) This section applies where—

(a) any person (the taxpayer) has been required by a notice served under or for the purposes of section 8 or 8A of this Act (or either of those sections as extended by section 12 of this Act) to deliver any return, and

(b) he fails to comply with the notice.

(2) The taxpayer shall be liable to a penalty which shall be £100.

(3) If, on an application made to them by an officer of the Board, the General or Special Commissioners so direct, the taxpayer shall be liable to a further penalty or penalties not exceeding £60 for each day on which the failure continues after the day on which he is notified of the direction (but excluding any day for which a penalty under this subsection has already been imposed).

(4) If—

(a) the failure by the taxpayer to comply with the notice continues after the end of the period of six months beginning with the filing date, and

(b) no application is made under subsection (3) above before the end of that period,

the taxpayer shall be liable to a further penalty which shall be £100.

(5) Without prejudice to any penalties under subsections (2) to (4) above, if—

(a) the failure by the taxpayer to comply with the notice continues after the anniversary of the filing date, and

(b) there would have been a liability to tax shown in the return,

the taxpayer shall be liable to a penalty of an amount not exceeding the liability to tax which would have been so shown.

(6) No penalty shall be imposed under subsection (3) above in respect of a failure at any time after the failure has been remedied.

(7) If the taxpayer proves that the liability to tax shown in the return would not have exceeded a particular amount, the penalty under subsection (2) above, together with any penalty under subsection (4) above, shall not exceed that amount.

(8) On an appeal against the determination under section 100 of this Act of a penalty under subsection (2) or (4) above, neither section 50(6) to (8) nor section 100B(2) of this Act shall apply but the Commissioners may—

(a) if it appears to them that, throughout the period of default, the taxpayer had a reasonable excuse for not delivering the return, set the determination aside; or

(b) if it does not so appear to them, confirm the determination.

(9) References in this section to a liability to tax which would have been shown in the return are references to an amount which, if a proper return had been delivered on the filing date, would have been payable by the taxpayer under section 59B of this Act for the year of assessment.

(10) In this section—

• “the filing date” means the day mentioned in section 8(1A) or, as the case may be, section 8A(1A) of this Act;

• “the period of default”, in relation to any failure to deliver a return, means the period beginning with the filing date and ending with the day before that on which the return was delivered.]

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 93 substituted (with effect in accordance with s. 199(2)(3) of the amending Act) by Finance Act 1994 (c. 9), Sch. 19 para. 25; S.I. 1998/3173, art. 2