Finance Act 1993

Miscellaneous

165 Commencement and transitionals

(1) This Chapter applies where—

(a) a qualifying asset is one to which the company becomes entitled on or after the company’s commencement day;

(b) a qualifying liability is one to which the company becomes subject on or after that day;

(c) the rights and duties under a currency contract are ones to which the company becomes entitled and subject on or after that day.

(2) Where a qualifying asset or liability is held or owed by a qualifying company both immediately before and at the beginning of its commencement day, for the purposes of this Chapter the company shall be treated as becoming entitled or subject to the asset or liability at the beginning of its commencement day.

(3) Where both immediately before and at the beginning of its commencement day a qualifying company is entitled to rights and subject to duties under a currency contract, for the purposes of this Chapter the company shall be treated as becoming entitled and subject to them at the beginning of its commencement day.

(4) Regulations may provide that where—

(a) a qualifying asset or liability is held or owed by a qualifying company both immediately before and at the beginning of its commencement day, and

(b) the asset or liability is of a prescribed description,

subsection (2) above shall not apply and for the purposes of this Chapter the company shall be treated as becoming entitled or subject to the asset or liability at such time (falling after its commencement day) as is found in accordance with prescribed rules.

(5) Regulations may provide that any rule made under subsection (4) above shall not apply, and that subsection (2) above shall accordingly apply, in a case where the company so elects in accordance with prescribed rules.

(6) Schedule 16 to this Act (which contains transitional provisions) shall have effect.

(7) For the purposes of this section—

(a) a company’s commencement day is the first day of its first accounting period to begin after the day preceding the appointed day;

(b) the appointed day is such day as may be appointed by order.

(8) Subsections (1) to (6) above do not apply for the purposes of construing Schedule 17 to this Act (which contains its own commencement provisions).

166 Anti-avoidance: change of accounting period

(1) This section applies where—

(a) a company changes the date on which any accounting period is to begin,

(b) if the change had not been made an exchange gain or gains not accruing to the company would have accrued or an exchange loss or losses accruing to the company would not have accrued or an exchange gain or gains accruing would have been bigger or an exchange loss or losses accruing would have been smaller, and

(c) the change mentioned in paragraph (a) above was made for the purpose, or for purposes which include the purpose, of securing the non-accrual or reduction of the gain or gains or the accrual or increase of the loss or losses.

(2) In such a case the inspector or on appeal the Commissioners concerned—

(a) may in arriving at the exchange gains and losses accruing to the company assume that there had been no such change as is mentioned in subsection (1)(a) above, and

(b) may accordingly make, with regard to the accounting period mentioned in subsection (1)(a) above, such adjustment to the company’s corporation tax liability as is just and reasonable.

(3) For the purposes of this section—

(a) an exchange gain is an exchange gain of a trade or an exchange gain of part of a trade or a non-trading exchange gain;

(b) an exchange loss is an exchange loss of a trade or an exchange loss of part of a trade or a non-trading exchange loss.

167 Orders and regulations

(1) Any power to make an order or regulations under this Chapter shall be exercisable by the Treasury.

(2) Any power to make an order under this Chapter shall be exercisable by statutory instrument.

(3) Any power to make regulations under this Chapter shall be exercisable by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the House of Commons.

(4) Any power to make regulations under this Chapter—

(a) may be exercised as regards prescribed cases or descriptions of case;

(b) may be exercised differently in relation to different cases or descriptions of case.

(5) Regulations under this Chapter may make provision in such way as the Treasury think fit, and in particular may amend or modify the effect of any enactment (whether or not contained in this Chapter).

(6) Regulations under this Chapter may include such supplementary, incidental, consequential or transitional provisions as appear to the Treasury to be necessary or expedient.

(7) No specific provision of this Chapter about regulations shall prejudice the generality of subsections (4) to (6) above.

168 Insurance companies

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, this Chapter shall apply in relation to insurance companies as it applies in relation to other qualifying companies.

(2) Regulations may make provision about the treatment for corporation tax purposes of exchange differences arising as regards assets and liabilities held or owed by insurance companies.

(3) Any such provision may be made—

(a) about exchange differences arising as regards assets or liabilities (or both) generally or about a proportion of such differences;

(b) about exchange differences arising as regards prescribed descriptions of assets or liabilities (or both) or about a proportion of such differences;

(c) about exchange differences arising as regards individual assets or liabilities.

(4) Any such provision may be made about assets or liabilities that are qualifying assets or liabilities, or about those that are not, or about both.

(5) Regulations under this section may—

(a) contain exceptions (whether by reference to categories of insurance business or otherwise);

(b) contain provision about the circumstances in which a charge or relief is to arise, its amount, and other matters relating to it;

(c) provide for consequential adjustments in a company’s corporation tax liability;

(d) exclude or modify the effect of any of the provisions of this Chapter.

(6) References in this section to exchange differences are to gains and losses attributable to fluctuations in currency exchange rates.

(7) For the purposes of this section an insurance company is a company to which Part II of the [1982 c. 50.] Insurance Companies Act 1982 applies.

169 Chargeable gains

Schedule 17 to this Act (provisions which relate to the taxation of chargeable gains and are connected with other provisions of this Chapter) shall have effect.

170 Amendments

Schedule 18 to this Act (which contains amendments) shall have effect.