Income Tax Act 2007

285 Interpretation of Chapter U.K.

(1) Chapter 4 has effect for interpreting references in this Chapter to a “qualifying holding”.

(2) In this Chapter and the following Chapters of this Part “securities”, in relation to a company, includes any liability of the company in respect of a loan (whether secured or not), except that it does not include—

(a) any liability of the company in respect of a loan which has been made to the company on terms which allow any person to require—

(i) the loan to be repaid, or

(ii) any stock or security relating to the loan to be re-purchased or redeemed,

within the period of 5 years from the making of the loan or, as the case may be, the issue of the stock or security, or

(b) any stock or security relating to a loan which has been made to the company on terms which allow any person to require the loan to be repaid, or the stock or security to be re-purchased or redeemed, within that period.

But see sections 317(4) and 328(2).

[F1 (3A) For the purposes of this Chapter, shares in a company are “eligible” unless they carry—

(a) a present or future preferential right to dividends that is within subsection (3B),

(b) a present or future preferential right to the company's assets on its winding up, or

(c) a present or future right to be redeemed.

(3B) A preferential right to dividends carried by a share in a company is within this subsection if—

(a) the amount of any dividends payable pursuant to the right, or the date or dates on which they are payable, depend to any extent on a decision of the company, the holder of the share or any other person, or

(b) the amount of any dividends that become payable at any time pursuant to the right includes any amount that became payable at any earlier time pursuant to the right, but has not been paid.]

(4) Any reference in this Chapter to a company's investments is taken to include, so far as it would not otherwise do so—

(a) money in the company's possession, and

(b) any sum owed to the company by another person if the company has account-holder's rights over that sum.

(5) For the purposes of subsection (4)(b) a company has “account-holder's rights” over a sum owed to the company if—

(a) the company has a right (whether or not the exercise of the right is subject to conditions) to require the other person to pay out the sum, or amounts out of the sum, to the company or at the company's direction, and

(b) the sum is owed to the company—

(i) as a result of amounts having been paid to the other person by or for the company, or

(ii) as a result of the other person having identified a sum in respect of which the company may exercise such a right.

(6) Subsection (5) does not have effect to cause a company's investments to be taken to include anything to which the company is not beneficially entitled, but for this purpose a company is taken to be beneficially entitled to—

(a) sums subscribed for shares issued by it, and

(b) anything to which it is entitled that (directly or indirectly) represents such sums.

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 285(3A)(3B) substituted (6.4.2011) for s. 285(3) (with effect in accordance with Sch. 2 paras. 6, 8 of the amending Act) by Finance (No. 3) Act 2010 (c. 33), Sch. 2 para. 2(6); S.I. 2011/662, art. 2