Commentary on Sections Part 1: Tax Credits Section 18: Decisions after final notice
86.Subsections (1) to (4) of section 18 provide that, after giving a notice under section 17, the Board must make a decision about the entitlement of a person or persons to a tax credit for the tax year. The Board may not make a decision before the deadline for responding to that notice, unless the claimant has, or claimants have, already responded to all the relevant provisions of the notice.
87.Section 17 allows for estimates of income to be used in notices issued by the Board and in claimants’ responses to those notices. Where an estimate is included in the response made, or treated as made, to the final notice, the Board will make an interim decision about entitlement under subsection (1) of section 18 pending final figures. Once those final figures are provided, or the time allowed for correcting the estimate has expired, the Board will make a final decision about entitlement in accordance with subsections (6) to (8) of that section.
88.In some cases, a claimant or claimants may respond to a final notice before the deadline for making such a response has been reached. In those cases, if the Board make a decision but, subsequently, the claimant makes, or the claimants make, a further declaration or statement within the original deadline, subsections (5) and (9) allow the Board to revise its decision accordingly.
89.Subsection (10) enables the Board to obtain any further information from claimants that it needs in order to be able to make a final decision about their entitlement. Subsection (11) provides that a final decision taken under this section is conclusive as to the entitlement of the person or persons to whom it relates, subject to any revision of that decision under subsections (5) or (9), and to the provisions on enquiries, discoveries and official error, and to any appeal.