Claire Shoesmith clears up confusion about the Revenue's investigation into tax evasion on life assurance products and outlines what to do if you are unable to meet the deadline.

At 9.30 this evening when most people will be celebrating the end of the working week with a beer or starting their weekend relaxing at home in front of the television, the Revenue Commissioners will be closing the doors on the voluntary part of their investigation into tax evasion in life assurance products.

The enquiry, announced three months ago, is aimed at routing out anyone who invested more than €20,000 in life assurance policies without declaring it to the Revenue. Such accounts are initially set up with a lump sum and some commissioners are concerned money may have been put into these accounts as a way of hiding money from the tax authorities.

The first deadline to voluntarily inform the Revenue of your intention to own up to your misdemeanour was May 23rd. As of that date, about 10,000 voluntary disclosures had been received, according to the Revenue, a number that some have estimated could raise more than €1 billion for the State.

Provided you got your disclosure in on time, you then had two months until today to submit the details of your investment to the Revenue and make any outstanding tax payments plus interest. Failure to meet this evening's deadline will result in your, or your company's, name being published in a public list of tax defaulters as well as the risk of prosecution.

As of Thursday morning, the Revenue had received 1,972 settlements with a total value of €106 million.

Although many people will already have submitted their disclosures and made their payments, considerable confusion still remains about exactly which policies the Revenue is investigating, what happens once you have made your disclosure and, more importantly, what you can do if you are unable to meet the deadline.

So, as Friday ticks away, and 9.30 looms, Adrian Sherlock and Cora Murray, directors at the Irish Taxation Institute, offer a few pointers as to what you can expect now if you have met the deadline and how you can limit the damage if you have not. Oh, and if you have missed the boat completely and did not even know what the investigation was about, there is something here for you too:

What exactly was today's deadline for?

Today is the deadline for settling tax, interest and penalties that are owed under the Revenue's SPIP campaign, an investigation into so-called "hot money" (funds that have not been declared to the Revenue) invested in life assurance products.

Today also has significant implications for many others, such as those who failed to make full or complete disclosures as part of the Revenue's previous investigations into bogus non-resident or offshore accounts.

How does today's deadline differ from the May 23rd deadline?

July 22nd was always the deadline date for the actual disclosure and submission of tax, interest and penalties. However, when the investigation was announced in April, one of the conditions was that you had to give notice to the Revenue by May 23rd of your intention to make a disclosure on July 22nd. Failing to give this notice by May 23rd originally meant that you would not qualify on July 22nd for the benefits of the scheme.

However, last month the Revenue changed their position on this and said that even if you did not give notice of intent by the May 23rd deadline, you could still make a disclosure and settlement today. To do this, you must include a note with your disclosure explaining why you missed the original date.

What are the benefits of owning up today?

If you own up, your tax penalties will be mitigated and you will avoid having your name published in the list of tax defaulters. You will also be given an assurance of non-prosecution for tax evasion.

What should I do if I submitted a protective notice on May 23rd because I thought I had a tax issue, but now know that I do not?

If after making an initial voluntary disclosure, you have now decided that you are not going to make a full disclosure, you must send a letter to the Underlying Tax Projects Unit at the Revenue informing them of this. Once you have done this, you should receive no further communication from the Revenue.

What will happen if I do not disclose a life assurance product whose investments exceeded €20,000 and contained undisclosed funds?

After today's deadline, the Revenue has indicated that it will use new powers provided in this year's Finance Act to inspect records held in life assurance companies. They will then seek High Court orders to identify the holders of such investments in life assurance companies and use this to instigate a detailed investigation.

If the Revenue discovers that a person who had undisclosed income in a life assurance product failed to make a disclosure, they will be "vigorously pursued" for unpaid taxes and penalties. The individual or company's name will be published in the list of tax defaulters and they may also be investigated with a view to criminal prosecution. In addition they will not be entitled to any mitigation.

What if I invested less than €20,000 in life assurance products which contained money that was not declared to the Revenue?

You still have a tax problem and will need to resolve it with the Revenue Commissioners. While you should do this as soon as possible, you are not obliged to do it by today.

I invested in life assurance products but have nothing to hide. What if the Revenue writes to me about my investments after today's deadline, do I need to prove my innocence?

No you do not. A report on the Revenue's own website states that "proof is not required and no notice of intention or disclosure is required to be submitted".

Is there anything I can do if I failed to make a disclosure under previous Revenue investigations but have decided that I would like to "make good" now?

Until last week, people in this category were not entitled to come forward under the SPIP scheme and therefore were not eligible for any of the benefits it provides.

However, last Friday the Revenue issued a statement saying that where a person now wishes to make a disclosure by the July 22nd deadline on a problem with one of the previous initiatives, penalties will be mitigated and any decision the Revenue might take on prosecution will be influenced by the fact that they did in the end cooperate.

Where the settlement exceeds €12,700, the individual's details will still be published.

What is the absolute latest time by which I can make a submission to Revenue?

The Revenue offices at Block 1, Clanwilliam Court, Lower Mount Street, which are dealing with this investigation, will remain open until 9.30 this evening to accept submissions under the voluntary disclosure scheme.

What should I do if I simply won't have enough time or information to make a full disclosure by this evening?

You may be in luck. Following discussions with the Irish Taxation Institute, the Revenue confirmed that where a full disclosure cannot be made by today's deadline, time extensions will be considered on a case-by-case basis. To take advantage of this, you must make a substantial payment on the account today and ensure you contact the Underlying Tax Projects Unit to inform then when the full disclosure will be made.