Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988

566 General powers to make regulations under Chapter IV.U.K.

(1)M1The Board shall make regulations with respect to the collection and recovery, whether by assessment or otherwise, of sums required to be deducted from any payments under section 559 and for the giving of receipts by persons receiving the payments to persons making them; and those regulations may include any matters with respect to which regulations may be made under section 203.

(2)M2The Board may make regulations—

(a)prescribing the period for which certificates under section 561 are to be issued and the form of such certificates;

(b)providing for the renewal of such certificates;

(c)providing for the issue, renewal or cancellation of such certificates or the giving of directions under section 561(6) F1. . . on behalf of the Board;

(d)requiring the furnishing of information with respect to changes in the control of a company holding or applying for such a certificate;

(e)requiring the production of such certificates to such persons and in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations and providing for the completion and return to the Board of forms certifying such production;

(f)requiring the surrender to the Board of such certificates in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations;

(g)requiring persons who make payments under contracts relating to construction operations to keep such records and to make to the Board such returns relating to payments so made by them as may be specified in the regulations, and requiring persons who hold such certificates to keep such records relating to payments so made to them as may be so specified;

(h)with respect to the production, copying and removal of, and the making of extracts from, any records kept by virtue of any such requirement as is referred to in paragraph (g) above and with respect to rights of access to or copies of any such records which are removed;

(j)requiring vouchers for payments made under contracts relating to construction operations to persons who hold such certificates to be obtained by the person making, and given by the person receiving, the payment, prescribing the form of the vouchers, and requiring their production or surrender to the Board in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations; and

(k)excluding payments from the operation of section 561 where, in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations, the requirements of regulations relating to the production of certificates or the obtaining, production or surrender of vouchers have not been complied with.

F2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Section 840 shall apply for the purposes of paragraph (d) above.

[F3(2A)The Board may by regulations make provision—

(a)for the issue of documents (to be known as “registration cards”) to persons who are parties, as sub-contractors, to any contract relating to construction operations or who are likely to become such parties;

(b)for a registration card to contain all such information about the person to whom it is issued as may be required, for the purposes of any regulations under this section, by a person making payments under any such contract;

(c)for a registration card to take such form and to be valid for such period as may be prescribed by the regulations;

(d)for the renewal, replacement or cancellation of a registration card;

(e)for requiring the surrender of a registration card in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations;

(f)for requiring the production of a registration card to such persons and in such circumstances as may be so specified;

(g)for requiring any person who—

(i)makes or is proposing to make payments to which section 559 applies, and

(ii)is a person to whom a registration card has to be produced under the regulations,

to take steps that ensure that it is produced to him and that he has an opportunity of inspecting it for the purpose of checking that it is a valid registration card issued to the person required to produce it.

(2B)A person who fails to comply with an obligation imposed on him by virtue of subsection (2A)(g) above shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding £3,000.

(2C)Subject to subsection (2D) below, where—

(a)a person who is a party to a contract relating to any construction operations (“the contractor”) makes or is proposing to make payments to which section 559 applies,

(b)the contractor is required by regulations under this section to make statements about another party to the contract (“the sub-contractor”) in any return, certificate or other document,

(c)a registration card containing the information to be stated should have been produced, in accordance with any such regulations, to the contractor, and

(d)the statements made in the return, certificate or other document, so far as relating to matters the information about which should have been obtainable from the card, are inaccurate or incomplete in any material respect,

the contractor shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding £3,000.

(2D)A person shall not be liable to a penalty under subsection (2C) above if—

(a)a valid registration card issued to the sub-contractor, or a document which the contractor had reasonable grounds for believing to be such a card, was produced to the contractor and inspected by him before the statements in question were made; and

(b)the contractor took all such steps as were reasonable, in addition to the inspection of that card, for ensuring that the statements were accurate and complete.

(2E)A person liable to a penalty under subsection (2C) above shall not, by reason only of the matters in respect of which he is liable to a penalty under that subsection, be liable to any further penalty under section 98 of the Management Act.

(2F)Regulations under this section may make different provision for different cases.]

[F4(3)Any power under this Chapter to make regulations prescribing the evidence required for establishing what is likely to happen at any time shall include power to provide for such matters to be presumed (whether conclusively or unless the contrary is shown in the manner provided for in the regulations) from evidence of what has previously happened.]

[F5(4)Any power under this Chapter to make regulations authorising or requiring a document (whether or not of a particular description), or any records or information, to be issued, given or requested or to be sent, produced, returned or surrendered to the Board shall include power—

(a)to authorise the Board to nominate a person who is not an officer of the Board to be the person who on behalf of the Board—

(i)issues, gives or requests the document, records or information; or

(ii)is the recipient of the document, records or information;

and

(b)to require the document, records or information, in cases prescribed by or determined under the regulations, to be sent, produced, returned or surrendered to the address (determined in accordance with the regulations) of the person nominated by the Board to receive it on their behalf.

[F6(5)Any power under this Chapter to make regulations imposing requirements with respect to any description of document, with respect to documents generally or with respect to any records or information shall include power to make provision, subject to such conditions as may be prescribed by or determined in accordance with the regulations—

(a)for the documents, records or information to be allowed to take an electronic form so prescribed or determined;

(b)for the issue, completion, furnishing, production, keeping, cancellation, return, surrender or giving of the documents, records or information to be something that has to be or may be done by the electronic means so prescribed or determined; and

(c)for the manner of proving in any proceedings the contents or transmission of anything that, by virtue of any regulations under this Chapter, takes an electronic form or is transmitted to any person by electronic means.]]

Textual Amendments

F1Words in s. 566(2)(c) repealed (31.7.1998) by Finance Act 1998 (c. 36), Sch. 27 Pt. 3(8)

F2Words in s. 566(2) repealed (29.4.1996) by Finance Act 1996 (c. 8), Sch. 41 Pt. 5(32)

F6S. 566(5) repealed (prosp.) by Finance Act 1999 (c. 16), s. 133(4), Sch. 20 Pt. 7, Notes 1 and 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 For regulations see Part III Vol.5.And see 1970(M) s.98A—special penalties in the case of certain returns.

Marginal Citations

M1Source-1975 (No.2) s.69(6)

M2Source-1975 (No.2) s.70(7); 1982 Sch.8 4; 1987 (No.2) s.93 (5), (6)