What is POCA?
The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) provides the framework for recovering the proceeds of crime. It creates criminal offences of money laundering, enables civil recovery of property without a conviction, and — most commonly — empowers the Crown Court to make confiscation orders after conviction. A confiscation order requires a defendant to pay a sum representing their benefit from criminal conduct.
Confiscation is not a fine and not a sentence. It is a distinct financial order made after conviction, calculated by reference to the defendant’s benefit from crime and the value of their realisable assets. Because it operates on assumptions that can sweep in apparently legitimate property, it is one of the most powerful — and most overlooked — consequences of a criminal conviction.
POCA also underpins a range of other powers: restraint orders freezing assets before trial, cash seizure and forfeiture, civil recovery of property, and money laundering offences. Each has its own procedure and its own scope for challenge.
Confiscation proceedings
- Triggered automatically in the Crown Court following conviction for a relevant offence
- The prosecution sets out the alleged benefit figure — often a lifestyle amount
- The court determines the 'benefit' and the 'available amount' from your realisable assets
- Orders must be paid within set timeframes; default periods of imprisonment follow non-payment
- Interest accrues on unpaid amounts at the statutory rate
How we help
- Challenging the prosecution's benefit calculation and assumptions
- Disputing 'criminal lifestyle' findings where they are not justified
- Evidencing legitimate sources of assets and income
- Negotiating the available amount and payment terms
- Defending allegations of hidden assets and the resulting adverse inferences
- Advice on variation of confiscation orders as circumstances change
The 'criminal lifestyle' assumption
Where the court finds that a defendant has a ‘criminal lifestyle’, it may assume that all income, transfers, and property over a six-year period came from crime — and add those assumed figures to the benefit calculation. This can produce a benefit figure far exceeding any proven gain, and one that the defendant must then displace with evidence.
Lifestyle findings apply automatically to certain offences (including drug trafficking and fraud), where the offence is part of a pattern, or where the benefit is significant. We scrutinise whether a lifestyle finding is properly engaged and, where it is not, challenge it. Where it is, we focus on rebutting the assumptions with clear, evidenced proof of legitimate provenance.
Other POCA powers
- Civil recovery proceedings (no conviction required)
- Restraint orders freezing assets before trial
- Cash seizure and forfeiture
- Confiscation in the Magistrates' Court for summary offences
Default sentences and ongoing enforcement
If the available amount is less than the benefit, the court imposes the benefit figure but with a term of imprisonment in default. The default term runs consecutively to any custodial sentence and is fixed by reference to the amount owed. Crucially, the debt is not discharged by serving the default term — the order remains enforceable and interest continues to accrue until it is paid.
This means a defendant can serve the default sentence and still owe the full amount years later. Effective representation at the confiscation hearing itself is therefore the most important opportunity to limit the order. We prepare meticulously, with forensic accountancy where needed, to ensure the benefit and available figures are correctly and fairly calculated.
Frequently asked questions
If the court decides you have a criminal lifestyle, it can make assumptions that all your income, transfers, and property over a six-year period came from crime — and add them to the benefit figure. This applies to certain offences (including drug trafficking and fraud) or where the offence is part of a pattern. We challenge lifestyle findings where the law and evidence allow.
If the available amount is less than the benefit, the court imposes the benefit figure but with a term of imprisonment in default. The default term runs consecutively to any custodial sentence and depends on the amount owed. Crucially, the debt is not discharged by serving the default term — the order remains enforceable and interest accrues.
Only assets representing or equivalent to the benefit of crime are recoverable, but once a criminal lifestyle is found the assumptions can sweep in apparently legitimate assets. Demonstrating legitimate provenance is central to our defence strategy.
The court can impose a default term of imprisonment for non-payment, fixed by the amount owed. Serving the default term does not discharge the debt — the order remains enforceable and interest accrues until paid. The most effective way to limit the order is robust representation at the confiscation hearing itself.
Yes. The court orders payment of the benefit figure, which can exceed your realisable assets — particularly where a criminal lifestyle is found and assumptions apply. You must then pay the full benefit amount even if it is greater than what you actually hold, so challenging the benefit calculation at the outset is critical.
In some circumstances, yes. Applications can be made to vary the available amount or payment terms where circumstances change, and to discharge the order where realisable assets fall. There are strict procedural rules and time limits, so we advise early on whether a variation application is appropriate.