(1)After section 59DA of the M1Taxes Management Act 1970 there shall be inserted—
(1)The Treasury may by regulations make provision, in relation to companies of such descriptions as may be prescribed, for or in connection with treating amounts of corporation tax for an accounting period as becoming due and payable on dates which fall on or before the date on which corporation tax for that period would become due and payable apart from this section.
(2)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1) above, regulations under this section may make provision—
(a)for or in connection with the determination of amounts of corporation tax which are treated as becoming due and payable under the regulations;
(b)for or in connection with the determination of the dates on which amounts of corporation tax are treated as becoming due and payable under the regulations;
(c)for or in connection with the making of payments to the Board in respect of amounts of corporation tax which are treated as becoming due and payable under the regulations;
(d)for or in connection with the determination of the amount of any such payments as are mentioned in paragraph (c) above;
(e)for or in connection with the determination of the dates on which any such payments as are mentioned in paragraph (c) above become due and payable;
(f)for or in connection with any assumptions which are to be made for any purposes of the regulations;
(g)for or in connection with the payment to the Board of interest on amounts of corporation tax which are treated as becoming due and payable under the regulations;
(h)for or in connection with the repayment of amounts paid under the regulations;
(i)for or in connection with the payment of interest by the Board on amounts paid or repaid under the regulations;
(j)with respect to the furnishing of information to the Board;
(k)with respect to the keeping, production or inspection of any books, documents or other records;
(l)for or in connection with the imposition of such requirements as the Treasury think necessary or expedient for any purposes of the regulations;
(m)for or in connection with appeals in relation to questions arising under the regulations.
(3)Regulations under this section may make provision—
(a)for amounts of corporation tax for an accounting period to be treated as becoming due and payable on dates which fall within the accounting period;
(b)for payments in respect of any such amounts of corporation tax for an accounting period as are mentioned in paragraph (a) above to become due and payable on dates which fall within the accounting period.
(4)Where interest is charged by virtue of regulations under this section on any amounts of corporation tax for an accounting period which are treated as becoming due and payable under the regulations, the company shall, in such circumstances as may be prescribed, be liable to a penalty not exceeding twice the amount of that interest.
(5)Regulations under this section—
(a)may make such modifications of any provisions of the Taxes Acts, or
(b)may apply such provisions of the Taxes Acts,
as the Treasury think necessary or expedient for or in connection with giving effect to the provisions of this section.
(6)Regulations under this section which apply any provisions of the Taxes Acts may apply those provisions either without modifications or with such modifications as the Treasury think necessary or expedient for or in connection with giving effect to the provisions of this section.
(7)Regulations under this section—
(a)may make different provision for different purposes, cases or circumstances;
(b)may make different provision in relation to companies or accounting periods of different descriptions;
(c)may make such supplementary, incidental, consequential or transitional provision as appears to the Treasury to be necessary or expedient.
(8)Subject to subsection (9) below, regulations under this section may make provision in relation to accounting periods beginning before (as well as accounting periods beginning on or after) the date on which the regulations are made.
(9)Regulations under this section may not make provision in relation to accounting periods ending before the day appointed under section 199 of the M2Finance Act 1994 for the purposes of Chapter III of Part IV of that Act (corporation tax self-assessment).
(10)In this section—
“modifications” includes amendments, additions and omissions;
“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made under this section.
(11)Any reference in this section to corporation tax includes a reference—
(a)to any amount due from a company under section 419 of the principal Act (loans to participators etc) as if it were an amount of corporation tax chargeable on the company;
(b)to any sum chargeable on a company under section 747(4)(a) of the principal Act (controlled foreign companies) as if it were an amount of corporation tax.”
(2)The Treasury may by regulations make provision for or in connection with the payment to the Board of an amount or amounts determined by or under the regulations in any case where, on or after 25th November 1997 and before 30th June 2002, a company takes any action specified in the regulations which has the effect—
(a)of delaying the application, or
(b)of delaying or avoiding the full effect,
in relation to the company of any regulations made under section 59E of the M3Taxes Management Act 1970.
(3)Any amount determined by or under regulations under this section shall be computed as if it were interest on a sum determined by or under the regulations; and any amount so determined shall be treated for the purposes of the Tax Acts as if it were interest due to the Board.
(4)The action which may be specified in regulations under this section includes—
(a)a change by a company in the date or dates on which any of its accounting periods begin or end; or
(b)a transfer by a company of any property, rights or liabilities to a company which belongs to the same group as that company.
(5)In subsection (4) above “group” means a company which has one or more 51 per cent. subsidiaries together with that or those subsidiaries.
(6)Regulations under this section—
(a)may make different provision in relation to different cases or in relation to companies of different descriptions;
(b)may make such supplementary, incidental, consequential or transitional provision as appears to the Treasury to be necessary or expedient.