An initial penalty of up to £300 for the failure to
deliver a return or document, or to furnish particulars,
information, a certificate or record etc required by a notice or
provisions specified in the Table at TMA70/S98 may be awarded by
the Commissioners under TMA70/S98(1)(i). Once the Commissioners
have awarded an initial penalty further, daily, penalties under
S98(1)(ii) can be determined by an officer of Revenue &
Customs.
The notices and provisions specified in the Table at
TMA70/S98 include
Under TMA70/S100C an officer of Revenue & Customs,
authorised to do so, may commence proceedings before the General or
Special Commissioners for the award of the initial penalty. The
authorisation made by Commissioners for HMRC covers all Inspectors
(see EM4902).
Proceedings must be approved personally by a Band B1
Inspector but it is not, however, necessary for that person to be
named in and sign the information laid before the Commissioners
(AH3840).
In cases involving the failure to comply with a TMA70/Section
20(3) notice you should make a report with the file in accordance
with EM2505 for approval to commence penalty proceedings.
Where the failure is to make a return etc on service of a notice
specified in TMA70/S98, column 1 of the Table, no penalty may be
imposed once the failure has been remedied.
Where the failure is to provide information etc under a
provision specified in TMA70/S98, column 2 of the Table, (returns
etc required by legislation or regulations without the need for a
notice from the Inspector, for example P11Ds) it is only the
continuing daily penalties that cannot be imposed after the failure
is remedied. The initial penalty of up to £300 can still be
imposed.
Thus the summons from the Commissioners now acts as a final
warning' for column 1 failures but not column 2 failures.
Guidance on the determination of daily penalties following the imposition of an initial penalty is at EM4900+.
