The POCA Confiscation Timetable

When a defendant is convicted of an offence that triggers the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), the court sets a confiscation timetable governing every stage of proceedings, from the exchange of financial statements through to the confiscation order itself and the final payment deadline and potential enforcement.

Missing any step of the POCA confiscation timetable set out carries significant consequences for the defendant and their legal team.

This guide sets out how the timetable works in practice, what the key deadlines to keep an eye out for are, what happens when these deadlines are allowed to pass, and where a forensic accountant’s involvement changes the outcome.

This guide was written by Rob Miller, a forensic accountant and director of Inquesta Forensic. Rob is a member of the ICAEW, a Certified Cryptocurrency Investigator, and a Practising Member of the Academy of Experts. He is regularly instructed by criminal defence solicitors across England and Wales in POCA confiscation proceedings.

What is POCA Confiscation? 

 

POCA confiscation, under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, is the process by which the court orders a convicted defendant to pay an amount based on the benefit they obtained from crime. The full framework, and how the Act works beyond confiscation, is covered in my guide to how the Proceeds of Crime Act works. The order can be met from any of the defendant’s assets, whether or not those assets were obtained through criminal activity. Since 29th June 2026, the Act has set out the principal objective of confiscation as depriving the defendant of their benefit from criminal conduct, so far as that is within the defendant’s means.

The purpose of Proceeds Of Crime Act confiscation is to ensure that financial criminals not only face the legal consequences of their actions, but also have whatever financial benefits they’ve gained from the illicit activities confiscated. These ‘financial benefits’ can include: 

• Funds in a bank account.
• Property acquired.
• Gifts given or received.

Ultimately the process is designed to deter criminal activities by hitting the criminals where it hurts them most: their wallets.

The POCA confiscation process includes multiple provisions for reviews, variations, and appeals to address circumstances and any questions that may arise throughout.

The POCA Confiscation Timetable

When a conviction triggers POCA proceedings, a confiscation timetable will be required. This marks the beginning of the official period of confiscation and includes all stages of the process, from initial conviction and the assessment of benefits, to the issuance of the confiscation order, the repayment window, and asset valuation when required.

The highly structured nature of the POCA confiscation timetable ensures that every single step is carried out to the letter, according to the law. This is vital in ensuring fairness and consistency during the process. Understanding this timetable is crucial in comprehending how the process will actually unfold. 

A step by step breakdown of the POCA confiscation timetable is as follows:

Step One: Conviction 

The Proceeds Of Crime Act confiscation journey will always begin with a criminal conviction. Upon an individual being found guilty of some form of criminal offence that has financially benefited them, it will trigger the initiation of the POCA confiscation process. 

Examples of financial crime that could begin this process include:

• Money laundering.
• Production & distribution of drugs. 
• Fraud.
• Bribery/corruption..
• Cybercrime such as hacking, cryptocurrency fraud, etc.
• Organised crime.

The goal behind the court taking this first step is to begin the process of ensuring that criminals cannot profit from their illegal activities. 

Step Two: Identify the Benefit

The benefit is the value of the property the defendant obtained as a result of, or in connection with, criminal conduct. How the court calculates it depends on whether the prosecutor asks the court to decide if the defendant has a criminal lifestyle. Since 29th June 2026, that has been the prosecutor’s choice.

If the prosecutor does not ask, or the court decides there is no criminal lifestyle, the court looks at particular criminal conduct: the offences the defendant was convicted of in the current proceedings, plus any offences taken into consideration.

If the court decides the defendant has a criminal lifestyle, it looks at general criminal conduct, which is any criminal conduct, whenever it happened and whether or not it was ever prosecuted. The court can then apply statutory assumptions: that property the defendant has held since conviction, and property received and money spent in the six years before proceedings began, came from crime. The defendant has to show, on the balance of probabilities, that an assumption is wrong or that making it would create a serious risk of injustice. In deciding whether there would be a serious risk of injustice, the court must now give appropriate weight to any explanation the defendant gives for being unable to produce the evidence that would have disproved the assumption.

The prosecution’s benefit figure is usually presented by an Accredited Financial Investigator (AFI) on behalf of the Crown. How that figure is built, and why it so often overstates the true position, is set out in my guide to calculating the POCA benefit figure.

The AFI is not required to have formal accounting qualifications in order to be assigned the role. From experience, this can mean that, in practice, the benefit figure can contain errors which can be acted upon.

Common errors I see include double-counting of transfers between accounts, incorrect tax year allocations, and income from legitimate sources being treated incorrectly as proceeds of crime.

Step Three: Value for Confiscation

The second figure the court needs is the available amount. This is the total value of everything the defendant holds, whether or not it can easily be converted into cash, less certain priority obligations, plus the value of any tainted gifts.

Since 29th June 2026, the court can also add a figure for hidden property. This applies where the benefit is more than everything the defendant holds plus any tainted gifts, and the court believes some of the difference is because property has been hidden. Before it does, the court must consider other explanations for the gap, such as the defendant’s spending or changes in the value of their assets. The court starts from the benefit figure. If the defendant shows that the available amount is lower, the available amount is what they are ordered to pay.

Step Four: What Is a POCA Confiscation Order?

Once the financial benefit and available amount has been determined, the court will issue a confiscation order. This will specify the amount the defendant is required to repay.

If the order is not paid on time, the defendant can be made to serve a default term of imprisonment, which the court fixes when it makes the order. Serving that term does not clear the amount owed.

Step Five: Payment Window

Once a confiscation order is made, payment is technically due on the same day. If the defendant cannot pay immediately, the court can allow up to three months. Where genuine efforts to raise funds have been made but the full amount remains outstanding, a further extension can be applied for. However, the total time to pay cannot exceed six months from the date the order was made.

Six months from the date of the order is the maximum the court can allow, so defendants and their solicitors should instruct a forensic accountant early enough to support any application for more time.

If the order remains unpaid after the deadline, interest accrues daily and the court may activate a default prison sentence, with the term scaling to the size of the outstanding balance.

Step Six: Asset Realisation

In some situations, in order to fulfil the confiscation order and recover the entire amount specified, the court may order the sale of the defendant’s assets. 

These assets can range from real estate, to vehicles, and financial holdings. All proceeds generated from these sales will go towards satisfying the financial obligation owed. Asset realisation plays a key role in ensuring that criminals will not benefit from their illegal activities. This is vital to upholding justice and ensuring financial integrity at all times.

If you are a criminal defence solicitor advising a client on POCA confiscation proceedings, I can help with the financial analysis at any stage of the process. Call 0161 243 0595 or email info@inquestaforensic.co.uk to discuss your case.

What Are the Section 16, 17, and 18 Statements?

The POCA confiscation timetable sets deadlines for three financial statements: the prosecution’s section 16 statement, the defence response under section 17, and the information the defendant provides under section 18. The court sets these deadlines as part of the timetable it draws up at the sentencing hearing. Understanding the purpose of each one is important because missing a deadline has immediate consequences, particularly on the defence side.

A section 18 statement is information the court orders the defendant to provide, usually about their assets (property, cash, bank accounts, vehicles, savings, etc.). Under the Criminal Procedure Rules, the court’s timetable normally requires this within 15 business days of the timetable being set, unless the court directs otherwise. Section 18 information can be ordered at any stage of proceedings, so it is not confined to that slot.

A section 16 statement is the prosecution’s statement of information, usually prepared by the prosecution’s AFI. The standard timetable allows 20 business days after service of the defendant’s section 18 information, unless the court directs otherwise.

In criminal lifestyle cases, the statutory assumptions cover the six years before proceedings began. Property received and money spent over that period are assumed to come from crime unless the defendant shows otherwise. The six-year period applies only to these assumptions. It is important to remember though that the figures in the s16 are not necessarily accurate and can be contested.

Section 17 statements are served last by the defence as a response to the s16. A section 17 confirms which of the prosecution’s figures are accepted and which are to be challenged. This is a key part of the POCA confiscation timetable process where a forensic accountant’s analysis directly reduces the amount at stake. The standard timetable allows 30 business days after service of the section 16 statement, unless the court directs otherwise.

Sometimes, the defence fails to serve the s17 statements by the court deadline. In such circumstances, the court may treat the defendant as accepting the allegations in the section 16 statement, apart from the allegation that they benefited from criminal conduct. The court has discretion here and does not have to treat every allegation as accepted. This is one of the most costly, and avoidable, outcomes in confiscation proceedings.

How Is the POCA Confiscation Timetable Set?

Since 29th June 2026, where the court sentences the defendant before dealing with confiscation, it must draw up a timetable for the confiscation proceedings before the end of the sentencing hearing. The court can revise the timetable later. This replaced the previous system under sections 14 and 15 of POCA, which allowed confiscation to be postponed for up to two years from conviction. The new section 15A does not set a fixed maximum period in its place. The court’s timetable governs how long the proceedings take.

The timetable sets the deadlines for the section 16, 17 and 18 statements and the date of the confiscation hearing. Where the defendant or the prosecution identifies someone else who holds an interest in property the defendant holds, that person must be notified. The standard timetable gives the defendant 15 business days to serve that notice and the interested person 45 business days to respond, unless the court directs otherwise. The court can also direct an early resolution of confiscation (EROC) meeting, either on the prosecutor’s application or of its own motion. At an EROC meeting, the prosecution and defence try to agree whether a confiscation order is needed and, if so, how much the defendant should pay. If they cannot agree, the meeting identifies the questions the court will have to decide.

Because the deadlines are set at the sentencing hearing, instructing a forensic accountant before that hearing gives the defence the most time to prepare. Solicitors with cases that began before 29th June 2026 should check which rules apply.

What Happens If Deadlines Are Missed?

Missing a deadline in POCA proceedings carries automatic consequences. Which deadline has been missed determines how serious those consequences are. There are two scenarios defence solicitors need to be aware of:

If payment deadlines are missed, interest accrues daily at 8% per annum under the Judgments Act 1838. The court can also activate the default prison sentence set at the time the order was made. Where a defendant genuinely cannot meet the order, the options open to them are covered in my guide to what happens when you can’t pay a confiscation order. It is important to remember that it is not a case of pay what is owed or serve the default sentence, prison time does not clear the debt. Enforcement agencies will continue to pursue assets upon release.

If the s17 statement is not served on time, the defendant may be treated as accepting the allegations in the prosecution’s section 16 statement, other than the allegation that they benefited from criminal conduct. In a criminal lifestyle case, the statutory assumptions still apply, and unexplained income or assets can be treated as coming from crime without a formal challenge on the record.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between the POCA proceedings timetable and the payment deadline?

The proceedings timetable and the payment deadline are two separate things. The court sets the proceedings timetable at the sentencing hearing, and it covers the period up to the confiscation order. This is when financial statements are exchanged and the benefit and available amount are decided. The payment deadline, under section 11, only starts once the confiscation order has been made. The defendant is required to pay on the day the order is made. If they cannot, the court can allow up to three months, extendable to a maximum of six months from the date of the order. The two run one after the other.

Do I have to pay a confiscation order if I serve the default sentence?

Yes. Serving the default prison sentence does not clear the confiscation order debt. The amount remains outstanding in full after release, and enforcement agencies will continue to pursue available assets. Interest also continues to accrue on the unpaid balance during and after any default sentence is served. The default sentence is a penalty for non-payment. It is not a substitute for payment.

Can a third party claim assets included in a confiscation order?

Yes. Under section 10A of POCA, the court can determine how much of an asset the defendant actually owns, expressed as a proportion of the asset’s value. Only the defendant’s share counts towards the available amount, so a genuine third party interest reduces the amount the defendant is ordered to pay.

The court cannot make that determination without first giving anyone it believes holds an interest a reasonable opportunity to make representations. The confiscation timetable builds this in: the defendant must notify any interested person, and that person then has 45 business days to respond with details of their interest and any supporting evidence, unless the court directs otherwise. This commonly arises where a property is registered in the defendant’s name but a spouse, partner, or business associate has a financial interest in it.

The determination is conclusive when the property is later realised, so the time to raise a third party interest is during the confiscation proceedings. There are limited routes afterwards, including an appeal, where the person was not given a reasonable opportunity to make representations or where giving effect to the determination would create a serious risk of injustice.

What does an Accredited Financial Investigator do in POCA proceedings?

An Accredited Financial Investigator (AFI) is appointed by the prosecution, usually from the police or a regulatory agency such as HMRC or the DWP, to calculate the benefit figure. They prepare the section 16 statement, which sets out what the prosecution says the defendant obtained from criminal conduct.

AFI training is run by the National Crime Agency and covers financial intelligence and confiscation. There is no requirement for an AFI to have formal accountancy qualifications. In practice, the benefit figures produced by AFIs can contain errors, including double-counting of bank transfers, incorrect treatment of legitimate income, and mathematical mistakes. A forensic accountant instructed by the defence reviews the s16 statement specifically to identify these errors.

How Can a Forensic Accountant Help With the POCA Confiscation Timetable? 

As a member of the ICAEW, a Certified Cryptocurrency Investigator, and a Practising Member of the Academy of Experts, I’m regularly instructed by criminal defence solicitors to assist in POCA confiscation proceedings.

My involvement is most useful when initiated early, ideally before the s18 statement is served, so the available amount is presented accurately from the outset rather than corrected later under pressure.

In reviewing the s16 statement, I look specifically for the errors that AFIs most commonly make: double-counting of transfers between the defendant’s own accounts, income from legitimate sources categorised as criminal, incorrect tax year allocations, and mathematical errors in the benefit calculation.

In my experience, the prosecution’s benefit figure is frequently overstated. Identifying the precise extent of that overstatement, and presenting it in a form the court will accept, is what a forensic accountant does that legal representation alone cannot.

I can also assist with the valuation of assets for the s18 statement, support negotiations with the prosecution’s financial investigator before the matter reaches a judge, and provide expert witness evidence at the confiscation hearing if required.

If you are a criminal defence solicitor instructing on a POCA confiscation matter, fill in the contact form to request a callback at a convenient time.. Alternatively, email info@inquestaforensic.co.uk or call 0161 243 0595.