Tax Collection and Management (Wales) Act 2016 section 115

Offence of concealing etc. documents following notification

Section 115 makes it a criminal offence to conceal, destroy or dispose of documents after being warned by the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) that those documents are likely to be requested under a formal information notice.

• It is a criminal offence to conceal, destroy or dispose of a document (or arrange for someone else to do so) after WRA has notified you that the document is, or is likely to be, the subject of an information notice and that WRA intends or is required to seek tribunal approval for that notice.
• The offence does not apply if the concealment, destruction or disposal takes place more than 6 months after WRA last gave the notification, or after an information notice requiring production of the document has actually been issued.
• A person charged with this offence has a defence if they can show they had a reasonable excuse for what they did with the document.
• Penalties on conviction range from a fine (on summary conviction in a magistrates' court) up to 2 years' imprisonment and/or a fine (on conviction on indictment in a Crown Court).