Finance Act 2022

8 Profits of property businesses: late accounting date rules U.K.

(1) Chapter 3 of Part 3 of ITTOIA 2005 (profits of property businesses: basic rules) is amended as follows.

(2) In section 275 (apportionment etc of profits to tax year)—

(a) in subsection (1), for “This section applies” substitute “This section and sections 275A to 275C apply”;

(b) at the end insert—

“(5) Sections 275A and 275B contain rules for the purpose of avoiding the need to apportion profits or losses under this section (and section 275C makes provision for the person carrying on the business to elect for those rules not to apply).”

(3) After section 275 insert—

“275A Rule if person starts to carry on business after 31 March

(1) This section applies if, in a tax year (“the relevant tax year”), the person carrying on the business—

(a) starts to carry it on after 31 March, and

(b) does not permanently cease to carry it on.

(2) For the purposes of this Part—

(a) the profits or losses of the business of the relevant tax year are treated as nil, and

(b) the actual profits or losses of the business of the relevant tax year are treated as arising in the following tax year.

275B Rule if there is a late accounting date

(1) This section applies if, in a tax year (“the relevant tax year”), the person carrying on the business—

(a) does not start to carry it on or starts to carry it on before 1 April,

(b) does not permanently cease to carry it on, and

(c) has an accounting date that is 31 March or 1, 2, 3 or 4 April.

(2) For the purposes of this Part—

(a) the profits or losses of the business of the period beginning with the day after the accounting date and ending with 5 April in the relevant tax year are treated as nil, and

(b) the actual profits or losses of the business of that period are treated as arising in the following tax year.

(3) In this section, “accounting date” in relation to a tax year means—

(a) the date in the tax year to which accounts are drawn up, or

(b) if there are two or more such dates, the latest of them.

275C Election to disapply late accounting date rules

(1) The person carrying on the business may make an election under this section.

(2) If an election under this section has effect for a tax year, neither of sections 275A and 275B apply in relation to the business for that tax year.

(3) An election under this section—

(a) must be made on or before the first anniversary of the normal self-assessment filing date for the first tax year for which it is to have effect, and

(b) has effect for that tax year and the four tax years following that tax year (subject to subsection (4)).

(4) If the person permanently ceases to carry on the business before the end of the last of the tax years mentioned in subsection (3)(b), the election has effect for each tax year up to and including the tax year immediately before the tax year in which the person permanently ceases to carry on the business.”

(4) The amendments made by this section have effect for the tax year 2023-24 and subsequent tax years.