Finance Act 2014

Customs and Excise Management Act 1979

12 After section 118BC insert—

“118BCA Inspection powers: betting duties and remote gaming duty

(1) Subsection (2) applies to premises if an officer has reasonable cause to believe that—

(a) betting facilities are being provided, have been provided or are to be provided there,

(b) a totalisator is being operated, has been operated or is to be operated there, or

(c) any business in respect of which a person is or may become liable to remote gaming duty is being carried on, has been carried on or is to be carried on there.

(2) The officer may at any reasonable time enter and inspect the premises and inspect—

(a) accounts, records and other documents in the custody or control of a relevant person, and

(b) any relevant equipment.

(3) Subsection (1) does not permit an officer to enter or inspect a particular part of premises if—

(a) the officer has no reasonable cause to believe that paragraph (a), (b) or (as the case may be) (c) of that subsection is satisfied with respect to that particular part, and

(b) that part is used only as a dwelling.

(4) An officer may at any reasonable time (whether or not as part of an inspection under subsection (2)) require a relevant person or anyone acting on such a person’s behalf—

(a) to open any relevant equipment, and

(b) to carry out any other operation that may be necessary to enable the officer to ascertain whether any general betting duty, pool betting duty or remote gaming duty is payable in respect of it and, if so, how much.

(5) A “relevant person” is a person—

(a) who by virtue of being a bookmaker, being treated by section 133 of the Finance Act 2014 as a bookmaker or providing facilities for making bets is liable to general betting duty,

(b) who by virtue of being a bookmaker is liable to pool betting duty,

(c) who by virtue of entering into arrangements for chargeable persons to participate in remote gaming is liable to remote gaming duty, or

(d) who is reasonably suspected by the officer of being, having been or being about to become liable as mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c).

(6) “Relevant equipment” is equipment that is being, or that the officer reasonably suspects of having been or of being intended to be, used on the premises for or in connection with any activity that constitutes betting or gaming for the purposes of Part 3 of the Finance Act 2014 (see sections 150, 183 and 188).

(7) Expressions used in this section and Part 3 of the Finance Act 2014 have the same meanings in this section as in that Part.”