On Monday (the 29th June 2026) The Crime and Policing Act 2026 (Commencement No.1 and Saving Provision) Regulations 2026 commencement order came into effect.
Of importance, there are no applicable transitional or saving provisions in either the commencement order or in the provisions of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 which enacted several important changes to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (see Schedule 21).
Accordingly, the legislative amendments which were commenced on the 29th June apply to all hearings and court orders made on that day hence.
One of the major changes is the repeal or removal of sections 14 and 15 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 which related to the postponement of confiscation proceedings and the need to get confiscation orders made within a two-year permitted period following conviction.
Although this was in practice greatly watered down due to cases including R. v. Haden and Others [2024] EWCA Crim 344, the law is now that there is no timelimit or permitted period between conviction and the making of a confiscation order and so applications to extend a permitted period and the finding of ‘exceptional circumstances’ are no longer needed.
In practice therefore technical arguments about the expiry of a permitted period entirely fall away and the Crown Court no longer needs to deal with any applications to extend the permitted period.
Written by Henry Skudra an expert in the field of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and asset recovery and editor of the leading text Millington and Sutherland Williams on the Proceeds of Crime.
This article reflects the law as of the date it was published. Whilst every effort has been taken to ensure that the law in this article is correct, it is intended to give a general overview of the law for educational and/or informational purposes. It is not intended to be a substitute for specific legal advice and should not be relied upon for this purpose. This article represents the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the view of any other member of St Philips Chambers.
