Schedule 36 Notices 2nd Edition

HMRC have powers, under Schedule 36 to FA 2008, to obtain information and documents from taxpayers and certain third parties.

Those powers were extended by FA 2021, allowing HMRC to seek details from financial institutions (e.g. of a particular taxpayer’s credit card transactions).

All of these powers are subject to statutory constraints, and this book clearly explains both the extent of the HMRC powers and the associated safeguards, based on statutory provisions and numerous case law precedents.

The author encourages recipients of information notices to comply fully with requests that are within the law, but to recognise and stand up to those that are not. Professional advisers are reminded of the risks of providing more information than the law requires.

“Essential reading for anyone involved with HMRC enquiry work. … The great strength of this book is that, unlike many such learned texts, it is immensely readable and littered throughout with helpful extracts of relevant tax cases.” – TAXline (November 2021)

Contents (in brief)

• Overview of HMRC’s information powers
• When can HMRC issue a Schedule 36 notice?
• Restrictions – “reasonably required”
• Restrictions – additional safeguards
• Different types of information notice
• Pre-approval by the tribunal
• Statutory records
• Other requirements for a valid information notice
• HMRC powers in relation to documents produced
• Appeals against Schedule 36 notices
• Concealment and destruction of documents
• Penalties for non-compliance
• Special cases (including groups, partnerships, domicile …)
• Miscellaneous provisions
• Appendices

New for this edition

This edition reflects key decisions such as:

• Kandore where the Court of Appeal considered the procedures when the First-tier pre-approves an information notice
• Yerou, Hackmey and One Call which give further guidance on when information is reasonably required
• Wiseman and Turcan dealing with claims that certain information is subject to legal professional privilege
• Thomas which provides guidance in relation to ambiguities within an information notice
• Butcher which discusses the extent to which a redacted document may be given to HMRC and the consequences of inadvertently omitting one document in a response to HMRC
• AML and Mattu giving further guidance on the additional penalties that can be charged in cases of persistent non-compliance.

It also contains new commentary to reflect HMRC’s revised approach to Alternative Dispute Resolution, and reflects developments in cases discussed in the previous edition (Embiricos and Sheiling Properties).

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