DST53000 - Notifying When Threshold Conditions Have Been Met

There is an obligation on the responsible member to notify HMRC once the group’s digital services revenues from digital services activities exceed the worldwide and UK revenue thresholds. This notification must be made within 90 days of the end of the first DST accounting period in which the threshold conditions have been satisfied.

The notification will only be valid if submitted through the ‘Register for Digital Services Tax’ service available on GOV.UK. The information required will include:

  • The Government Gateway details of the responsible member
  • The name and address of the ultimate parent company (if different from the responsible member)
  • The start and end dates of the first DST accounting period
  • Confirmation that the ultimate parent has nominated the responsible member to act on its behalf
  • A contact person’s name, email address and phone number

Nil returns

If a group thinks that they may have exceeded the revenue thresholds for the DST period they should register within 90 days from the end of their first DST accounting period to avoid a potential late notification penalty. Should they subsequently find out that they have not exceeded the revenue thresholds, they should contact HMRC to explain the situation.

Penalties for failing to notify

If the responsible member fails to notify HMRC within 90 days of the end of the first accounting period for which the thresholds have been reached the responsible member will be liable to a penalty under Schedule 41 of Finance Act 2008, unless there is a reasonable excuse.