6th March 2026
Keith Gordon and Siobhan Duncan acted for the appellants in Oscroft & Others v HMRC [2026] UKFTT 251 (TC), where the First-tier Tribunal allowed the appeals.
The case concerned counteraction notices and assessments issued under the transactions in securities regime (Part 13, ITA 2007).
While the Tribunal accepted HMRC’s interpretation that the reserves of a wholly owned subsidiary could be treated as “assets available” when determining “relevant consideration”, the appeals ultimately turned on time limits.
The Tribunal held that the transactions in securities regime does not create a standalone assessment power, meaning HMRC must rely on the ordinary four-year assessment time limit in s34 of TMA 1970, with s698 of ITA 2007 operating only as a long stop cap.
Because HMRC assessed out of time, the appeals were allowed and the assessments set aside.
This appeal serves as a useful reminder of the importance of procedural limits on HMRC’s powers, even in complex anti-avoidance cases.
View the full decision at the below link.
Click here to download