Tax Credits Act 2002 section 10A

Provision of information by Board for purposes relating to welfare of children

Section 10A allows HMRC to share certain tax credits, child benefit and guardian's allowance information with local authorities across the UK when they are investigating concerns about a child's welfare, and sets out strict rules on how that information may be used and disclosed.

• HMRC may share non-income information held for tax credits, child benefit or guardian's allowance purposes with local authorities conducting child welfare enquiries or investigations under the relevant children's legislation in England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland.
• Recipients of the information may only pass it on for the purposes of the same child welfare enquiry or investigation, for civil or criminal proceedings, or to a person whom HMRC could have supplied the information to directly — and onward sharing for proceedings or to other authorised persons requires HMRC's permission.
• Unauthorised disclosure of information received under this provision is a criminal offence, punishable on indictment by up to two years' imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine, or on summary conviction by up to twelve months' imprisonment in England and Wales (six months in Scotland or Northern Ireland) and/or a fine up to the statutory maximum.
• Defences to the offence include a reasonable belief that the disclosure was lawful, disclosure required by legislation or court order, disclosure made with the consent of the person the information relates to, or disclosure in anonymised form that prevents identification.

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