Chapter 4 General
44.Chapter 4 contains sections 163 to 198 which make provision relating to administrative matters, security and enforcement, offences and evidence, reviews and appeals, definitions and supplementary matters.
45.Section 163 provides that the Commissioners are responsible for the collection and management of general betting duty, pool betting duty and remote gaming duty. Commissioners’ regulations may: require the manner and time in which the duties are to be accounted for and paid, and; provide as appears necessary for the administration, enforcement of and protection of revenue from the duties.
46.Section 164 provides for registration for the duties. The Commissioners must keep registers, those carrying on relevant businesses or entering into relevant arrangements may not do so without registering and the Commissioners may make regulations about registration. Inter alia, these regulations may provide that: the Commissioners can, in specified circumstances require the appointment of a United Kingdom representative responsible for making returns and/ or discharging liability, and; for the registration of groups including that group members are jointly and severally liable for each others’ liabilities for the duties.
47.Section 165 provides that an accounting period is three consecutive months or another period as provided for by Commissioners’ regulations. The first day of an accounting period is as directed by the Commissioners. With the agreement of the Commissioners, a person may have accounting periods longer or shorter than three months and/ or periods may begin on days other than that specified in the Commissioners’ direction on the matter. The Commissioners may make transitional arrangements by direction.
48.Section 166 provides for Commissioners’ regulations about returns for the duties.
49.Section 167 provides for Commissioners’ regulations about payment of the duties and that, subject to these regulations, section 12 of the Finance Act 1994 applies in relation to assessments to duty.
50.Section 168 provides for Commissioners’ regulations about the provision and display of information and records by specified persons.
51.Section 169 provides for the Treasury to make regulations about when stake money and gaming payments are or are not treated as assigned to a stake fund or gaming prize fund. The Commissioners may, by notice, make provision about stake funds and gaming prize funds.
52.Section 170 provides that the Commissioners, may by notice, require a registrable person to give security or further security in the following circumstances: there is a serious risk that the duty will not be paid, or: the person is in a country or territory with which the United Kingdom does not have satisfactory arrangements for the enforcement of liabilities. The person has at least 30 days from the date of the notice to give security and the notice has no effect if it is under review or appeal.
53.Section 171 provides that the Commissioners may, by notice, require a registrable person to appoint a UK representative, who must be approved by them, in circumstances where the person is in a country or territory with which the United Kingdom does not have satisfactory arrangements for the enforcement of liabilities. This notice may be combined with a notice under section 170, and the appointment of a representative may remove the need for a security under that section. The person has at least 30 days from the date of the notice to give security and the notice has no effect if it is under review or appeal.
54.Section 172 provides for the review and appeal of a Commissioners’ notice requiring a person to give security or to appoint a UK representative.
55.Section 173 provides that a person who does not comply with a notice requiring them to give security or to appoint a UK representative is guilty of a summary offence.
56.Section 174 provides that the fraudulent evasion of general betting duty, pool betting duty or remote gaming duty is an offence and further provision is made in respect of penalties for such an offence.
57.Section 175 makes provision for specified failures and contraventions to attract penalties under the Finance Act 1994.
58.Section 176 makes provision for any interest that may be charged under the Finance Act 2009 on general betting duty, pool betting duty or remote gaming duty may be enforced as if it were an amount of duty.
59.Section 177 introduces Schedule 27 which sets out the process under which the Commission may direct the Gambling Commission to revoke a person’s Remote Operating Licence. The process may be begun where the person: is required to register for a duty but has not done so; does not comply with conditions or requirements relating to registration; has not paid a duty, or; is required to give security but has not done so. The Commissioners’ decision is subject to review and appeal; following the review and appeal procedures in Finance Act 1994. Provision is made for a Remote Operating Licence to be suspended as a stage before final revocation – a suspended licence may be reinstated if, for example, the Commissioners’ decision to seek revocation is upheld at one stage in the appeal process but overturned at a subsequent stage. This Schedule further provides for the Gambling Commission to seek the Commissioners’ consent before issuing a licence to the holder of a licence that has been suspended or revoked under the provisions of this Schedule.
60.Section 178 provides that an offence committed by a body corporate is also committed by any officer of that body corporate (except in certain circumstances).
61.Section 179 prevents HMRC officers from committing offences in the course of enforcing these duties under the instructions of the Commissioners.
62.Section 180 provides for the circumstances in which a Commissioners’ certificate that something has or has not happened, constitutes evidence of that occurrence until the contrary is proved, and that copies of documents certified by the Commissioners as such are admissible in proceedings.
63.Section 181 provides that, in proceedings, on the question of whether relevant gambling facilities were capable of being used in or from the United Kingdom, the burden of proof lies on the person claiming that the facilities were not capable of being so used.
64.Section 182 provides for certain decisions to be treated as if they were appealable under FA 1994.
65.Sections 183 - 189 define terms used in this Part of the Act.
66.Section 190 provides an index to some of the expressions used in this Part.
67.Section 191 provides that if an amount of money (stake money, gaming payment etc.) is in a currency other than sterling it must be converted into sterling using the London closing exchange rate for the previous day. If such an exchange rate does not exist, the rate to be used is that as set out in a Commissioners’ notice.
68.Section 193 provides that this Part does not cause anything unlawful to be lawful (except insofar as the Part makes specific provision).
69.Section 196 introduces Schedule 28 which contains consequential amendments to other Acts that flow from this new legislation.
70.Section 197 introduces Schedule 29 provides for transitional arrangements about the tax treatment of bets etc. that are made before 1 December 2014 but where receipts are not due, or winnings are not paid until after that date.
71.Section 198 makes provision for these changes to come into effect on the dates specified.
