Finance Act, 1968

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Obligation to keep certain records.

6.—(1) In this section “records” includes books of account relating to—

(a) all sums of money received and expended in the course of the carrying on or exercising of a trade, profession or other activity and the matters in respect of which the receipt and expenditure takes place, and

(b) all sales and purchases of goods and services where the carrying on or exercising of a trade, profession or other activity involves the purchase or sale of goods or services.

(2) (a) Every person who, on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person, carries on or exercises any trade, profession or other activity the profits or gains of which are chargeable under Schedule D shall keep such records as will enable true returns to be made, for the purposes of income tax and sur-tax, of such profits or gains.

(b) Where any such trade, profession or other activity is carried on in partnership, the precedent partner, within the meaning of section 69 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be the person carrying on that trade, profession or other activity.

(3) Subsection (2) shall—

(a) in the case of a trade, profession or other activity which is commenced after the passing of this Act, have effect on and from the date of such commencement, and

(b) in any other case, have effect on and from the 1st day of September, 1968.

(4) Records kept pursuant to the preceding provisions of this section shall be retained by the person required to keep the records for a period of six years after the completion of the transactions, acts or operations to which they relate:

Provided that this subsection shall not require the retention of records in respect of which the inspector notifies the person who is required to keep them that retention is not required, nor shall it apply to the books and papers of a company which have been disposed of in accordance with section 305 (1) of the Companies Act, 1963 .

(5) Any person who contravenes subsection (2) in respect of any records in relation to a return for any year of assessment or contravenes subsection (4) in relation to those records shall be liable to a penalty of £100:

Provided that a penalty shall not be imposed under this subsection if it is proved that no person is chargeable to tax in respect of the said profits or gains for that year of assessment.

(6) Section 508 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , is hereby amended by the insertion in subsection (1) after “240 or 296” of “or section 6 of the Finance Act, 1968”.