| 21/11/2008 |
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| Board of Special Commissioners - Cases |
| Case no. 39a/55 |
Decided: 12 December, 1955 |
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Additional assessments; powers of the Commissioner - article 53(1) Income Tax Act, now 33(1) Income Tax Management Act
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Appellants raised a preliminary plea regarding the validity of the assessments, claiming that the Commissioner could not issue an assessment regarding a matter which had already been the subject of an earlier assessment, so long as there were no sources of income which had been omitted from the return.
The Board observed that article 53(1) was construed in very vague terms and left everything to the Commissioner's opinion and judgment, except as regards when such additional assessment could be issued. Otherwise the law made no restrictions; additional assessments are not limited only to those cases where certain sources of income have been omitted by the taxpayer from his return. The words "when it appears to the Commissioner" are much wider than the wording of section 125(1) in the U.K. law which restricts additional assessments to cases of "discovery". Nevertheless, the word "discovery" in section 125(1) has been interpreted to include also an "undercharge". Consequently the wording of article 53(1), which is wider in scope than the UK section, is not to be interpreted restrictively and given a narrow meaning.
The Board decision was appealed by appellant. The Court (case no. 14) confirmed the decision. The final decision was on a point of fact only and is not being published.
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