Finance Act 2012
|
Amendment of Chapter 1 (interpretation, liability and payment) of Part 2 of Finance Act 2001. |
70.— Chapter 1 of Part 2 of the Finance Act 2001 is amended— | |
(a) in section 96(1) by deleting the definitions of “accompanying administrative document”, “free warehouse” and “free zone”, | ||
(b) in section 96(1) by substituting the following for the definition of “tax representative”: | ||
“ ‘tax representative’ means a person approved by the Commissioners under section 109U for the purposes of that section;”, | ||
(c) in section 96(1) by inserting the following definition: | ||
“ ‘transaction’ means any action giving rise to a liability to, or a relief from, any duty of excise;”, | ||
(d) in section 96(1) by substituting the following for the definition of “vehicle”: | ||
“ ‘vehicle’ means a mechanically propelled vehicle or any other conveyance and includes— | ||
(a) any craft or aircraft, and | ||
(b) any container, trailer, tank or any other thing, which— | ||
(i) is or may be used for the storage of goods in the course of carriage, and | ||
(ii) is designed or constructed to be placed on, in or attached to any such vehicle or other conveyance;”, | ||
(e) by substituting the following for section 97: | ||
“97.— For the purposes of this Part the following are excisable products: | ||
(a) alcohol products within the meaning of section 73 of the Finance Act 2003 , | ||
(b) tobacco products within the meaning of section 71 of the Finance Act 2005 , and | ||
(c) mineral oils within the meaning of section 94 of the Finance Act 1999 .”, | ||
(f) in section 98A(2) by substituting “that consignment is, except in the case of an irregular release, released for consumption” for “that consignment is released for consumption”, | ||
(g) in section 99 by substituting the following for subsections (2) and (3): | ||
“(2) The liability under subsection (1)(b) is fully or partly discharged where, and to the extent that, the consignment concerned has been (as the case may be)— | ||
(a) received, under a suspension arrangement, into another tax warehouse in the State, or | ||
(b) ended in accordance with subsection (1) of section 109K, and evidence to that effect has been received in accordance with subsection (2) of that section. | ||
(3) A registered consignor is liable for payment of the excise duty on any consignment dispatched by such registered consignor under section 109E(1)(b), and that liability is fully or partly discharged where, and to the extent that, the consignment has ended in accordance with subsection (1) of section 109K, and evidence to that effect has been received in accordance with subsection (2) of that section.”, | ||
(h) in section 99A by substituting the following for subsection (1): | ||
“(1) In this section ‘authorised officer’ means an officer authorised in writing by the Commissioners to exercise the powers conferred by this section.”, | ||
(i) by inserting the following after section 99A: | ||
“Estimation of excise duty due. | ||
99AA.— (1) Where a person who is required, by any provision of excise law, to make a return of the excise duty payable by such person for any period fails to do so within the time specified in the provision concerned, the Commissioners may, subject to subsection (2)— | ||
(a) estimate the amount of duty payable by that person for such period, and | ||
(b) serve notice (in this section referred to as a ‘notice of estimation’) on the person of the amount estimated. | ||
(2) (a) Where the Commissioners are satisfied that the amount of any estimation is excessive or deficient, or that there is no liability for the period concerned, then they may accordingly reduce, increase or withdraw such estimation. | ||
(b) In any case where an estimation is reduced or increased under paragraph (a), the Commissioners shall serve an amended notice of estimation on the person concerned. | ||
(3) If at any time after a notice of estimation or amended notice of estimation, as the case may be, is served, the return referred to in subsection (1) is made, and excise duty is paid in accordance with that return together with any interest and costs that may have been incurred in connection with that payment, then the notice of estimation, or amended notice of estimation, shall stand discharged. | ||
Time limits. | ||
99AB.— (1) In this section ‘taxable period’ means a period in respect of which a person is required, by any provision of excise law, to make a return of the excise duty payable by that person for that period and to pay that amount. | ||
(2) Subject to subsection (4), an assessment under section 99A or an estimation under section 99AA may be made at any time not later than 4 years from— | ||
(a) except where paragraph (b) applies, the date of the transaction giving rise to the liability concerned, | ||
(b) where the liability is in respect of a taxable period, the last day of such period. | ||
(3) Subject to subsection (4), proceedings for the recovery of an amount of excise duty may not be instituted, or other action for such recovery taken, unless a notice of assessment, or another notification in writing stating that such amount is due, has been issued by the Commissioners before the expiry of a period of 4 years from— | ||
(a) except where paragraph (b) applies, the date of the transaction giving rise to the liability to that amount, | ||
(b) where the liability is in respect of a taxable period, the last day of such period. | ||
(4) (a) Subsections (2) and (3) shall not apply in any case where there are reasonable grounds to believe that any form of fraud or neglect has been committed by or on behalf of any person in connection with the liability concerned. | ||
(b) For the purposes of paragraph (a), and subject to paragraph (c), ‘neglect’ means negligence or a failure to give any notice, information or record, or to make any return, required to be given or made under any provision of excise law, within such time limit as may be allowed under the provision concerned. | ||
(c) A person who fails, within the time limit referred to in paragraph (b), to satisfy any requirement referred to in that paragraph shall be deemed not to have neglected to do so where the person— | ||
(i) satisfies the requirements within such further time as the Commissioners may allow in any particular case, or | ||
(ii) shows to the satisfaction of the Commissioners that there was sufficient excuse for such failure, and where such person satisfies the requirements as soon as possible thereafter.”, | ||
(j) by deleting section 100, | ||
(k) in section 103(2)(a) by substituting “Where any amount of excise duty becomes payable” for “Without prejudice to the provisions of section 74 of the Finance Act 2002 concerning betting duty, where any amount of excise duty becomes payable”, | ||
(l) in section 103 by inserting the following subsection: | ||
“(3) Where an amount of excise duty has been repaid to a person, and where all or part of that amount is then found not to be properly refundable under any provision of excise law, simple interest shall be paid by the person on that amount or part of that amount at the rate of 0.0274 per cent for each day from the date the repayment is made to the date on which it was returned to the Commissioners or otherwise accounted for to their satisfaction.”, | ||
(m) in section 104 by substituting the following for subsections (1), (2) and (3): | ||
“(1) Subject to such conditions as the Commissioners may prescribe or otherwise impose, a full relief from excise duty shall be granted, by way of remission or repayment, on any excisable products that are shown to the satisfaction of the Commissioners to be delivered— | ||
(a) under diplomatic arrangements in the State, | ||
(b) to international organisations recognised as such by the State, and the members of such organisations based in the State, within the limits and under the conditions laid down by international conventions establishing such organisations or by other agreements, | ||
(c) for consumption under any agreement entered into between the State and a country other than a Member State where such agreement also provides for exemption from value-added tax, | ||
(d) for export or re-export from the State to a place outside the European Union, or | ||
(e) to a tax-free shop at an airport for supply to passengers travelling to a destination outside of the European Union. | ||
(2) Subject to such conditions as the Commissioners may prescribe or otherwise impose, a full relief from excise duty shall be granted on any alcohol products or tobacco products released for consumption in another Member State which― | ||
(a) have been acquired by a private individual in such another Member State for his or her own use and not for commercial purposes, and | ||
(b) are transported into the State by that private individual, and accompanied by him or her during such transportation. | ||
(3) For the purpose of subsection (2) the question of whether the alcohol products or tobacco products, as the case may be, are for a private individual’s own use or are for commercial purposes shall be determined in accordance with regulations under section 153.”, | ||
(n) in section 104 by inserting the following subsection: | ||
“(5) Subject to such conditions as the Commissioners may prescribe or otherwise impose, a full relief from excise duty shall be granted, by way of repayment, on any excisable products that have been released for consumption in the State and which― | ||
(a) have been dispatched to another Member State in accordance with section 109V, or | ||
(b) have been sold and dispatched by a State vendor to a private individual in another Member State in accordance with section 109W.”, | ||
(o) by deleting section 105, | ||
(p) by deleting section 105A, | ||
(q) by substituting the following for section 105B: | ||
“105B.― (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), and without prejudice to the provisions of section 960H of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 relating to the offset of overpayments, where a person has, in respect of any period or transaction, paid an amount of excise duty, or interest on excise duty, which was not due, the Commissioners shall repay such amount to such person. | ||
(2) Subject to subsection (3), a repayment shall only be made under subsection (1) where a claim for that repayment, in writing or such other form as the Commissioners may allow, is made to them within a period of 4 years from the date of payment to which the claim relates or from the date of any other transaction giving rise to an entitlement to a repayment. | ||
(3) Subsection (2) does not apply where a person would, on due claim, be entitled to repayment of excise duty or interest paid on that duty under any other provision of excise law which provides for a shorter period within which a claim for repayment is to be made. | ||
(4) Except as provided for by this section or by any other provision of excise law, or by section 941 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 as it applies for the purposes of the duties of excise, the Commissioners shall not repay an amount of excise duty paid to them or pay interest in respect of an amount of excise duty paid to them.”, | ||
(r) by deleting section 105C, | ||
(s) in section 105D(1) by deleting the definition of “valid claim”, | ||
(t) in section 108A(2) by substituting the following for paragraph (c): | ||
“(c) the mixing or blending of excisable products with other excisable products or other materials, but only where― | ||
(i) excise duty has been paid in full on the excisable products so mixed or blended, and | ||
(ii) the amount so paid is not less than the amount chargeable on the mixture or blend, | ||
(d) the production by a private individual of wine, beer or other fermented beverage to which a relief from alcohol products tax under section 77 (f) of the Finance Act 2003 applies.”, | ||
and | ||
(u) in section 109(7) by substituting the following for paragraph (b): | ||
“(b) (i) Without prejudice to paragraph (a), and subject to subparagraph (ii), a tenant shall, at a level specified in the authorisation document, provide security for any excisable products received by such tenant as a consignee under a suspension arrangement. | ||
(ii) Subparagraph (i) does not apply to consignments of mineral oil by sea that are received by a tenant and delivered immediately into storage tanks in the tax warehouse that are under the direct control of the proprietor.”. |