Finance Act 2000

Criminal offences: Preparations for evasion U.K.

95 (1) Where a person— U.K.

(a) becomes a party to any agreement under or by means of which a supply of a taxable commodity is or is to be made, or

(b) makes arrangements for any other person to become a party to such an agreement,

he is guilty of an offence if he does so in the belief that levy chargeable on the supply will be evaded.

(2) Subject to sub-paragraph (3), a person guilty of an offence under this paragraph shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a penalty of level 5 on the standard scale.

(3) In the case of any offence under this paragraph, where level 5 on the standard scale is less than three times the sum of the amounts of levy which are shown to be amounts that were or were intended to be evaded in respect of the supply in question, the penalty shall be the amount equal to three times that sum (instead of level 5 on the standard scale).

(4) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (3) the amounts of levy that were or were intended to be evaded shall be taken to include—

(a) the amount of any tax credit, and

(b) the amount of any repayment of levy,

which was, or was intended to be, obtained in circumstances where there was no entitlement to it.

(5) In determining for the purposes of sub-paragraph (3) how much levy (in addition to any amount falling within sub-paragraph (4)) was or was intended to be evaded, no account shall be taken of the extent (if any) to which any liability to levy of any person fell, or would have fallen, to be reduced by the amount of any tax credit or repayments of levy to which he was, or would have been, entitled.