Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 949Y

Public hearings

Section 949Y sets out the rules on whether appeal hearings before the Appeal Commissioners are held in public or in private.

• All appeal hearings are held in public by default.
• The Appeal Commissioners may direct that a hearing, or part of one, be held in private where necessary on specified grounds such as national security, public interest, confidentiality, individual privacy, or the interests of justice.
• Where an appellant requests a private hearing, whether by application or in the statement of case, the Appeal Commissioners must direct that the hearing or specified part be held in private.
• An application for a private hearing must be made no later than 14 days after the appellant is notified of the time and place of the hearing.