OpenLegislation

Section 89 Information offencesI1I2

England and Wales

Wrongful disclosure

(1)

A person commits an offence if the person discloses information in contravention of section 86(5)(b).

Wrongful disclosure of revenue and customs information

(2)

A person commits an offence if the person, in contravention of section 88(6) or (7), discloses any revenue and customs information relating to a person whose identity—

(a)

is specified in the disclosure, or

(b)

can be deduced from it.

Supplementary

(3)

It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under subsection (1) or (2) to prove that the person reasonably believed—

(a)

that the disclosure was lawful, or

(b)

that the information had already and lawfully been made available to the public.

(4)

A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) is liable—

(a)

on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding the general limit in a magistrates’ court, to a fine or to both;

(b)

on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, to a fine or to both.

(5)

Subsections (4) and (5) of section 19 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 apply to an offence under subsection (2) as they apply to an offence under that section.

(6)

In this section, “revenue and customs information relating to a person” has the same meaning as in section 19 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005.

Annotations

Commencement

I1

S. 89 in force at Royal Assent for specified purposes, see s. 100(2)(g)

I2

S. 89 in force at 12.12.2025 in so far as not already in force by S.I. 2025/1286, reg. 2(1)(e)(iii)