Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018

Amendment of the Value Added Tax Act 1994

57 After section 58 insert—

“58ZA International VAT arrangements

(1) The Commissioners may make regulations imposing obligations on taxable persons for the purpose of giving effect to international VAT arrangements.

(2) The regulations may require the submission to the Commissioners by taxable persons of statements containing such particulars of—

(a) relevant transactions in which the taxable persons are concerned, and

(b) the persons concerned in those transactions,

as may be specified in the regulations.

(3) The regulations may provide for statements about relevant transactions to be submitted at such times and intervals, in such cases and in such form and manner as may be specified—

(a) in the regulations, or

(b) by the Commissioners in accordance with the regulations.

(4) A transaction is a “relevant transaction” for the purposes of this section if information about it could be relevant to any international VAT arrangements.

(5) If any international VAT arrangements have effect—

(a) any Schedule 11 information power is exercisable with respect to matters that are relevant to those arrangements as it is exercisable with respect to matters that are relevant for any of the purposes of this Act, and

(b) any power of an officer of Revenue and Customs to obtain information or documents under any enactment or subordinate legislation relating to VAT is exercisable in relation to matters which are relevant to those arrangements.

(6) The Commissioners may disclose information which is obtained as a result of subsection (5) (and no obligation of secrecy, whether imposed by statute or otherwise, prevents such disclosure) if—

(a) the disclosure is required in accordance with the international VAT arrangements, and

(b) the Commissioners are satisfied that the recipient is bound, or has undertaken, both to observe rules of confidentiality which are no less strict than those applying to the information in the United Kingdom and to use the information only for the purposes contemplated by the arrangements.

(7) Powers are exercisable as a result of subsection (5) only if the Commissioners have given (and not withdrawn) a direction in writing authorising their use (either generally or in relation to specified cases).

(8) The Commissioners may not make regulations under this section, or give a direction under subsection (7), unless they consider that making the regulations or giving the direction would facilitate the administration, collection or enforcement of VAT.

(9) In this section—

• “international VAT arrangements” means arrangements which—

  (a)

  have effect by virtue of an Order in Council under section 173 of the Finance Act 2006, and

  (b)

  relate to VAT or any tax corresponding to VAT imposed under the law of the territory, or any of the territories, in relation to which the arrangements have been made, and

• “Schedule 11 information power” means any power of the Commissioners under Schedule 11 relating to—

  (a)

  the keeping of accounts,

  (b)

  the making of returns and the submission of other documents to the Commissioners,

  (c)

  the production, use and contents of invoices,

  (d)

  the keeping and preservation of records, and

  (e)

  the furnishing of information and the production of documents.”