Understanding the Meaning of ‘Inspect’ in RSTPA Guidance

Meaning of “Inspect” in Revenue Scotland’s Investigatory Powers

Revenue Scotland’s power to inspect is narrower than a power to search. Officers may look at what is visible on business premises and record information about what they properly inspect, but they cannot use an inspection as a reason to rummage for hidden goods, assets or documents.

• Inspection generally means examining what can be seen, while searching means looking for something not already visible or apparent.
• Officers may sometimes touch items or ask for them to be opened if that is part of checking what is there, but this must not become a search for concealed material.
• Where possible, Revenue Scotland says the person present should be asked to open items, and officers usually expect to be escorted on the premises.
• After an inspection, officers may record information about premises, assets, property, goods and business documents they have properly inspected.
• They may also mark assets to show they have been inspected.
• Whether something is lawful inspection or an unlawful search depends on the facts, especially whether the officer is simply examining what is available or actively trying to uncover hidden items.

Scroll down for the full analysis.

What “inspect” means in Revenue Scotland’s investigatory powers

This page explains the meaning of “inspect” in Revenue Scotland’s investigatory powers guidance. The distinction matters because an officer may be allowed to look at what is openly available on business premises, but that does not automatically give them power to carry out a search. In practice, the boundary between inspection and search affects what Revenue Scotland can do on site and what a business can be required to allow.

What this rule is about

The source material deals with the scope of a power to inspect. That is a narrower power than a power to search. The key legal point is that an inspection power lets Revenue Scotland look at things that can be seen and gather information from what is inspected, but it does not let officers go looking for hidden items, documents or assets.

This is important because powers of entry and inspection are intrusive. The guidance is drawing a line between what is permitted during an inspection and what would go beyond that power.

What the official source says

Revenue Scotland’s guidance says that a power to inspect does not authorise a search for goods, assets or documents. In its words, “inspect” means officers may look at what can be seen, but may not look for something that cannot be seen.

The guidance gives a broad rule of thumb: inspection is broadly “by eye” whereas search is “by hand”. It also warns that this is too simplistic to resolve every case.

The source goes on to say that inspecting can include touching things and opening items, provided this is still part of inspection and not a search for something concealed. Where possible, Revenue Scotland says it will ask the person present to open items so the contents can be inspected. It also says officers expect to be escorted once on the premises, although they do not have to insist on an escort.

After carrying out an inspection, officers may obtain and record information relating to:

• the business premises,
• business assets,
• property,
• goods, and
• business documents that have been inspected.

They may also mark assets to show that those assets have been inspected.

What this means in practice

In practical terms, the power is limited to examining what is available to be examined during the inspection. It is not a general right to rummage through premises, containers, files or storage areas in order to discover something not already apparent.

That said, inspection is not limited to standing still and looking from a distance. The guidance makes clear that officers may touch items and may open things. The limit is the purpose and character of what they are doing. If opening or handling an item is part of examining what is there, that may still be inspection. If the officer is probing, rummaging or digging around to find something not visible, that starts to look like a search.

The practical consequence is that the same physical act can be lawful or unlawful depending on context. Opening a cabinet that a business representative is asked to open so that visible contents can be checked may fall within inspection. Going through drawers, folders or containers in order to discover whether something is hidden there may go beyond inspection.

The guidance also confirms that Revenue Scotland may make records of what it has inspected. So an inspection can involve taking notes and recording information about premises, assets, goods or business documents that were properly inspected. It can also involve marking assets to show they have already been checked.

How to analyse it

When deciding whether something is inspection or search, the useful questions are:

• What is the officer actually trying to do: examine what is present, or find something not presently apparent?
• Is the item or information already visible or readily presented, or is the officer looking for concealed material?
• Is any opening or handling limited to enabling inspection, or does it amount to rummaging through contents?
• Has the person on the premises been asked to open the item, as the guidance says will happen where possible?
• Is the officer simply recording what has been inspected, or going further in a way that suggests a search?

It is also sensible to separate three things that the guidance treats differently:

• looking at what can be seen,
• touching or opening items as part of inspection, and
• searching for something not visible.

The first is clearly allowed. The third is clearly outside the inspection power described here. The second is the area where judgment is often needed.

Example

Illustration: an officer attends business premises and sees stock stored in labelled boxes in a warehouse area. The officer asks a staff member to open a box so the contents can be checked and recorded. On the guidance, that can still be inspection.

By contrast, if the officer starts opening multiple drawers, cupboards and containers in different rooms to see whether any unrecorded documents or assets are hidden there, that would be much more likely to amount to a search rather than an inspection.

Why this can be difficult in practice

The source itself recognises that the simple formula “inspect is by eye and search is by hand” is not enough on its own. Real inspections are more complicated. An officer may need to move, touch or open something in order to inspect it properly. That does not automatically turn the process into a search.

The difficulty is that the boundary depends heavily on facts and degree. Small acts of handling may be part of inspection. More intrusive acts aimed at uncovering hidden items may become a search. The source does not set out a complete legal test for every situation, so judgment is required.

Another practical difficulty is that business documents are specifically mentioned as things that may be inspected and recorded. Whether viewing documents is inspection or searching for documents may depend on how those documents are accessed and whether they were already presented or visible.

Key takeaways

• A power to inspect is not the same as a power to search.
• Revenue Scotland may look at what can be seen and may record information from what it has properly inspected.
• Touching or opening items can still be part of inspection, but going looking for hidden goods, assets or documents is outside the inspection power described in the guidance.

This page was last updated on 24 March 2026

Useful article? You may find it helpful to read the original guidance here: Understanding the Meaning of ‘Inspect’ in RSTPA Guidance

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