Finance Act

In Britain, the annual act of Parliament which implements the proposals made by the chancellor of the Exchequer in the Budget. Preliminary approval is given to certain changes in taxation, mainly those in which there is a change in the rate at which a tax is levied, by means of resolutions passed immediately after the chancellor's Budget statement.

These resolutions have statutory effect under the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 1968 (which superseded a similar act of 1913). The Finance Bill must be given a second reading within 20 days of the completion of the debates on the budget statement and, since 1968, some clauses of the bill have been taken in a standing committee, the rest being dealt with in the committee of the whole House.