Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005 section 421A

Power to obtain information

Section 421A gives HMRC officers the power to require information about the ownership of shares, loan capital and bearer securities, particularly in connection with close companies.

• HMRC can require any registered holder of shares or loan capital to confirm whether they are the beneficial owner, and if not, to identify who is
• Where a company appears to be a close company, HMRC can require it to provide details of any bearer securities issued, including who received them and how much each person received
• HMRC can also require anyone who received, sold or transferred bearer securities issued by a close company to provide information needed to identify the beneficial owners
• Securities for these purposes include shares, stocks, bonds, debentures, debenture stock, and any promissory notes or other instruments evidencing indebtedness to a loan creditor of the company