Guidance on Tribunal Approval for Business Premises Inspection Applications

Tribunal approval for Revenue Scotland inspections

Revenue Scotland can ask the tribunal to approve certain tax inspections, sometimes without telling the person affected in advance. The tribunal will only approve an inspection if it is justified in the circumstances, with extra safeguards for valuation inspections. Once approval is given, there is no normal right of appeal, so any challenge would usually have to be by judicial review.

• Tribunal approval may be sought for inspections of a taxpayer’s business premises, an involved third party’s business premises, or premises being inspected for valuation purposes.
• Applications can be made without notice, so the taxpayer or occupier may not know about the hearing before approval is granted.
• For ordinary business premises inspections, the tribunal must be satisfied that the inspection is justified in the circumstances.
• For valuation inspections, the taxpayer and usually the occupier must be given a reasonable chance to make representations, unless the occupier cannot be identified, and the tribunal must see a summary of any comments made.
• Revenue Scotland will normally seek tribunal approval where it expects objection, and it may also ask the tribunal to approve a related information notice at the same time.
• The tribunal’s approval is final for ordinary appeal purposes; any challenge is by judicial review, which is limited to issues such as legality or procedure.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

Tribunal approval for a Revenue Scotland inspection

This page explains when Revenue Scotland can ask the tribunal to approve an inspection, what conditions must be met, and what that means for the person being inspected. The rule matters because tribunal approval can allow an inspection to go ahead even where objection is expected, and there is no ordinary right of appeal against the tribunal’s approval.

What this rule is about

Revenue Scotland has powers to inspect premises in connection with a tax position. In some cases, it may ask the tribunal to approve the inspection in advance. The source material deals with when that can happen, the tests the tribunal must apply, and the special rules where the inspection is for valuation purposes.

The guidance covers applications for approval of:

• an inspection of a taxpayer’s business premises,
• an inspection of an involved third party’s business premises, and
• an inspection to value premises, or property on the premises.

It also says Revenue Scotland may ask the tribunal to approve the use of certain related powers referred to elsewhere in the guidance.

What the official source says

Under section 147 of the Revenue Scotland and Tax Powers Act 2014, Revenue Scotland may apply to the tribunal for approval of an inspection. The application may be made without notice. In other words, the affected person may not be told that the hearing is taking place.

For an inspection of business premises belonging to the taxpayer or an involved third party, the tribunal may approve the inspection only if it is satisfied that, in the circumstances, the inspection is justified.

For an inspection whose purpose is to value premises, or property on the premises, extra safeguards apply. The tribunal cannot approve the inspection unless:

• the person whose tax position is under consideration, and the occupier of the premises, have been given a reasonable opportunity to make representations to Revenue Scotland, unless the tribunal is satisfied that the occupier cannot be identified,
• the tribunal has been given a summary of any representations made, and
• the tribunal is satisfied that, in the circumstances, the inspection is justified.

The guidance also says Revenue Scotland will normally seek tribunal approval where it expects objection to the inspection, or has already encountered objection.

If Revenue Scotland intends to issue an information notice that must be complied with during the inspection, and it wants the inspection notice approved by the tribunal, it will ordinarily seek tribunal approval for the information notice at the same time.

The tribunal’s decision on whether to approve the inspection notice is final. There is no right of appeal against that approval. Any challenge must be brought by judicial review.

What this means in practice

The practical effect is that tribunal approval acts as an external check on Revenue Scotland’s use of inspection powers, but it does not create a normal appeal route for the taxpayer once approval has been given.

For ordinary business premises inspections, the key question is whether the tribunal considers the inspection justified in the circumstances. The source does not give a detailed statutory checklist on this page, but the test is not automatic. Revenue Scotland must persuade the tribunal that approval is warranted.

For valuation inspections, the process is more protective. Before approval can be given, the taxpayer and usually the occupier must have had a reasonable chance to comment. That matters where the inspection may affect someone who occupies the property but is not the taxpayer.

The reference to applications being made without notice is important. It means a person may only learn of the tribunal’s involvement after approval has already been granted. That is particularly significant because there is then no ordinary appeal against the approval itself.

The point about linked information notices also matters in practice. If Revenue Scotland obtains tribunal approval for both the inspection and the information notice together, that may reduce the scope for later challenge through the usual appeal process for information notices, because the tribunal has already approved the notice.

How to analyse it

If you are trying to understand whether tribunal approval may be sought or what it means, the sensible questions are:

• What kind of inspection is proposed: business premises, third-party business premises, or a valuation inspection?
• Is Revenue Scotland likely to expect resistance or practical objection to entry or to the exercise of related powers?
• For a valuation inspection, have the taxpayer and the occupier been given a reasonable opportunity to make representations?
• If the occupier has not been consulted, is that because the occupier genuinely cannot be identified?
• What representations, if any, were made, and have they been summarised for the tribunal?
• On the facts, is the inspection really justified in the circumstances?
• Is Revenue Scotland also seeking approval for an information notice to be complied with during the inspection?
• If approval is granted, is any challenge realistically about legality or procedural fairness rather than the merits of the inspection? If so, the route mentioned in the guidance is judicial review, not appeal.

The phrase “justified in the circumstances” is central. In practice, that directs attention to the factual reasons for the inspection, not simply whether Revenue Scotland would find inspection convenient.

Example

Illustration: Revenue Scotland is checking a land transaction tax position and believes that a valuation issue turns on the condition and nature of commercial premises. It wants to inspect the property to support a valuation. Before the tribunal can approve that inspection, the taxpayer and the occupier normally must have had a reasonable opportunity to comment on the proposed visit. Revenue Scotland must then give the tribunal a summary of any comments received. The tribunal may approve the inspection only if it is satisfied that the inspection is justified in the circumstances.

By contrast, if Revenue Scotland wants to inspect a taxpayer’s business premises and expects the taxpayer to object, it may apply to the tribunal without notice. In that case, the issue for the tribunal is whether the inspection is justified. The taxpayer may not have advance notice of the hearing.

Why this can be difficult in practice

Several parts of the rule are fact-sensitive.

First, the test of whether an inspection is “justified” is broad. The source does not define it in detail here. That means the answer will depend heavily on the factual context and the purpose of the inspection.

Second, in valuation cases, the requirement to give a “reasonable opportunity” to make representations may raise practical questions. What was reasonable may depend on timing, the nature of the property, and whether the occupier could be identified.

Third, the link between an inspection notice and an information notice can be important but easy to miss. If both are approved together, the practical options for challenging the information requirements may be narrower than a reader might expect.

Fourth, the absence of an appeal can come as a surprise. The guidance is clear that the tribunal’s approval decision is final, with judicial review being the route for challenge. Judicial review is not a rehearing on the facts. It is a challenge to legality, procedure, or rationality, so it is a much narrower form of challenge.

Key takeaways

• Revenue Scotland can ask the tribunal to approve certain inspections, and the application may be made without notice.
• The tribunal must be satisfied that the inspection is justified, and valuation inspections have extra procedural safeguards.
• There is no ordinary appeal against tribunal approval of an inspection notice; any challenge must be by judicial review.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Guidance on Tribunal Approval for Business Premises Inspection Applications

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