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All Revenue guidance relating to senior accounting officers (SAOs) has been superseded by the department’s new Senior Accounting Officer Guidance Manual.
Deloitte’s Mark Kennedy, a director in the company’s tax management consulting team, welcomed the taxman’s direction on the practical application of SAO legislation, which requires senior finance officers of large UK companies to certify personally that their controls over UK taxes are fit for purpose.
Mr Kennedy said the revised guidance was ‘positive news for both senior accounting officers and their companies, as it provides greater clarity around some of the more challenging aspects of the rules, including the circumstances in which penalties may or may not be levied.
‘Given that the initial light touch of HMRC’s application of the rules has now ended, senior accounting officers and their businesses need to ensure any year one issues have been resolved and effective controls are maintained to minimise the exposure to penalty,’ added Mr Kennedy.
He also noted that HMRC ‘intend to amend certain specific sections of the guidance to confirm their view that the failure of a senior accounting officer to submit a certificate can be disclosed to the company’.
The new Revenue view includes the matters of banks and insurance companies, which were previously exempt from the turnover test, within scope of the rules, as well as overseas activities of UK companies. And department has confirmed that rules will apply where insolvency procedures are underway.
