Revenue Scotland and Tax Powers Act 2014 section 179

Assessment of penalties under Chapter 2

Section 179 sets out the procedure Revenue Scotland must follow when assessing and notifying penalties for failure to make returns or pay tax, including payment deadlines, enforcement treatment, and the rules for adjusting penalty assessments when the underlying tax liability was initially estimated incorrectly.

• Revenue Scotland must assess any penalty, notify the person liable, and specify the period or transaction to which the penalty relates.
• The penalty must be paid within 30 days of the notification being issued, and penalty assessments are treated as tax assessments for enforcement purposes.
• Where a penalty for failure to make a return was based on an incorrect estimate of the tax liability, Revenue Scotland may issue a supplementary assessment (if the tax was underestimated) or a replacement assessment (if it was overestimated).
• Where a penalty for failure to pay tax was based on an incorrect amount of tax owing, Revenue Scotland may issue a supplementary assessment for an underestimate or amend the original assessment downward to reflect the correct amount, even after the normal time limit for making the assessment has passed.