SolvedCH116400 | Offshore matters: inaccuracies penalties: categorisation of overseas territories
From HM Revenue & Customs · Compliance Handbook
The Treasury decides which overseas territories fall into categories 1 and 3. They are specified by a Treasury Order. These orders are made by Statutory Instrument.
See below the lists of category 1 and category 3 overseas territories. Any territories not with categories 1 and 3 are in category 2. The correct list to use depends on the date when the failure to notify occurred.
Table of Territories for an inaccurate document submitted before 24 July 2013
Note: Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories of the UK are, unless listed, in category 2.
| Category 1 | Category 3 |
|---|---|
| Anguilla | Albania |
| Aruba | Algeria |
| Australia | Andorra |
| Belgium | Antigua and Barbuda |
| Bulgaria | Armenia |
| Canada | Bahrain |
| Cayman Islands | Barbados |
| Cyprus | Belize |
| Czech Republic | Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba |
| Denmark (not including Faroe Islands and Greenland these are both in category 2) | Brazil |
| Estonia | Cameroon |
| Finland | Cape Verde |
| France (Includes oversees Departments of France; the overseas collectivities of France are in category 2) | Colombia |
| Germany | Congo, Republic of the |
| Greece | Cook Islands |
| Guernsey (includes Alderney and Stark) | Costa Rica |
| Hungary | Curaçao |
| Ireland | Cuba |
| Isle of Man | Democratic People’s Republic of Korea |
| Italy | Dominica |
| Japan | Dominican Republic |
| Korea, South | Ecuador |
| Lativa | El Salvador |
| Lithuania | Gabon |
| Malta | Grenada |
| Montserrat | Guatamala |
| Netherlands (not including Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba) | Honduras |
| New Zealand (not including Tokelau) | Iran |
| Norway | Iraq |
| Poland | Jamaica |
| Portugal (Includes Maderia and the Azores) | Kyrgyzstan |
| Romania | Lebanon |
| Slovakia | Macau (China and Hong Kong are in category 2) |
| Slovenia | Marshall Islands |
| Spain (Includes the Canary islands and other overseas territories of Spain) | Mauritius |
| Sweden | Micronesia, Federated States of |
| United States of America (not including overseas territories and possessions of Unites States of America which are in Category 2) | Monaco |
| - | Nauru |
| - | Nicaragua |
| - | Niue |
| - | Palau |
| - | Panama |
| - | Paraguay |
| - | Peru |
| - | Saint Kitts and Nevis |
| - | Saint Lucia |
| - | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
| - | San Marino |
| - | Seychelles |
| - | Sint Maarten |
| - | Suriname |
| - | Syria |
| - | Tokelau |
| - | Tonga |
| - | Trinidad and Tobago |
| - | United Arab Emirates |
| - | Uruguay |
Table of Territories for an inaccurate document submitted on or after 24 July 2013
Note: Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories of the UK are, unless listed, in category 2.
| Catagory 1 | Catagory 3 |
|---|---|
| Anguilla | Albania |
| Aruba | Algeria |
| Belgium | Andorra |
| Australia | Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba |
| Bulgaria | Brazil |
| Canada | Cameroon |
| Cayman Islands | Cape Verde |
| Cyprus | Colombia |
| Czech Republic | Congo, Republic of the |
| Denmark (not including Faroe Islands and Greenland these are both in category 2) | Cook Islands |
| Estonia | Costa Rica |
| Finland | Curaçao |
| France (Includes oversees Departments of France; the overseas collectivities of France are in category 2) | Cuba |
| Germany | Democratic People’s Republic of Korea |
| Greece | Dominican Republic |
| Guernsey (includes Alderney and Stark) | Ecuador |
| Hungary | El Salvador |
| Ireland | Gabon |
| Isle of Man | Guatemala |
| Italy | Honduras |
| Japan | Iran |
| Korea, South | Iraq |
| Lativa | Jamaica |
| Lithuania | Kyrgyzstan |
| Malta | Lebanon |
| Montserrat | Macau (China and Hong Kong are in category 2) |
| Netherlands (not including Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba) | Marshall Islands |
| New Zealand (not including Tokelau) | Micronesia, Federated States of |
| Norway | Monaco |
| Poland | Nauru |
| Portugal (Includes Maderia and the Azores) | Nicaragua |
| Romania | Niue |
| Slovakia | Palau |
| Slovenia | Panama |
| Spain (Includes the Canary Islands and other overseas territories of Spain) | Paraguay |
| Sweden | Peru |
| Switzerland | Seychelles |
| United States of America (not including overseas territories and possessions which are in category 2) | Sint Maarten |
| - | Suriname |
| - | Syria |
| - | Tokelau |
| - | Tonga |
| - | Trinidad and Tobago |
| - | United Arab Emirates |
| - | Uruguay |
In some circumstances you will need to use the list for the date when the person discovers that there is an inaccuracy in a document that they have already submitted. Do this if
when the person originally submitted the return the inaccuracy was not careless or deliberate, and
they then discover the inaccuracy in the document but fail to take reasonable steps to tell us, see CH81080.
For example, Sara submits the return in June 2013, not carelessly or deliberately. She discovers it was inaccurate in August 2013 but does not take reasonable steps to tell us. Use the category list for inaccurate documents submitted on or after 24 July 2013.
The Treasury may move a territory between categories. However, the categorisation only applies from the date on which the order comes into force.
So you must always check to make sure you identify the correct category that an overseas territory was in at the date when the person gave the inaccurate return or other document to HMRC. You can then apply the appropriate maximum and minimum penalty percentages in CH116600.