Who can HMRC Commissioners delegate their functions to under section 14 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005?

Under section 14, HMRC Commissioners may delegate functions to a single Commissioner, a committee they have established (which may include external non-HMRC members to support good corporate governance), or any other person. However, the power to make statutory instruments cannot be delegated at all and must be retained by the Commissioners.

Which HMRC functions cannot be delegated under section 14 CRCA 2005?

The power to make regulations, rules, or orders by statutory instrument must be retained by the Commissioners and cannot be delegated. Additionally, the authority to give general instructions for public interest disclosures under section 20(1)(a) may only be delegated to a single Commissioner, not to a committee or any other person.

Does delegating a function prevent HMRC Commissioners from exercising it themselves?

No. An important principle under section 14 is that delegating a function does not strip the Commissioners of the ability to exercise it themselves. After delegation, the Commissioners and HMRC officers retain full authority to carry out the delegated function directly, unless specific directions or arrangements provide otherwise.

What safeguards apply when HMRC delegates functions to external persons?

When a function is delegated to someone who is neither a Commissioner nor an HMRC officer, the Commissioners have a duty to monitor how that external person exercises the delegated function. The external delegate must comply with any directions issued by the Commissioners or by the group of Commissioners who made the delegation.

Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 section 14

Delegation

Section 14 sets out the rules governing how HMRC Commissioners may delegate their functions to others, including which functions cannot be delegated and what safeguards apply.

Commissioners may delegate functions to a single Commissioner, a committee (which may include external members), or any other person, but certain functions such as making statutory instruments cannot be delegated at all
The power to authorise general public interest disclosures under section 20(1)(a) may only be delegated to a single Commissioner, not to committees or other persons
Delegating a function does not prevent the Commissioners themselves, or HMRC officers, from continuing to exercise that same function
Where a function is delegated to an external person, the Commissioners must monitor how that person carries out the function, and the delegate must follow any directions the Commissioners give

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