10.  After regulation 165 there shall be inserted the following regulation—

“Time within which a claim must be made

165A.— (1) Subject to paragraph (3) below, a claim shall be made within the period of 3 years and 6 months following the later of—

(a) the date on which the consideration (or part) which has been written off as a bad debt becomes due and payable to or to the order of the person who made the relevant supply; and

(b) the date of the supply.

(2) A person who is entitled to a refund by virtue of section 36 of the Act, but has not made a claim within the period specified in paragraph (1) shall be regarded for the purposes of this Part as having ceased to be entitled to a refund accordingly.

(3) This regulation does not apply insofar as the date mentioned at sub-paragraph (a) or (b) of paragraph (1) above, whichever is the later, falls before 1st May 1997.”.