Finance Act 1976

Exclusion of value of excepted assets

8 (1) In determining for the purposes of this Schedule what part of the value transferred by a transfer of value is attributable to the value of any relevant business property so much of the last-mentioned value as is attributable to any excepted assets within the meaning of sub-paragraph (2) below shall be left out of account.

(2) An asset is an excepted asset in relation to any relevant business property if it was not either used wholly or mainly for the purposes of the business concerned throughout the whole or the last two years of the relevant period defined in sub-paragraph (5) below, or required at the time of the transfer for future use for those purposes ; but where the business concerned is carried on by a company which is a member of a group, the use of an asset for the purposes of a business carried on by another company which at the time of the use and immediately before the transfer was also a member of that group shall be treated as use for the purposes of the business concerned, unless that other company's membership of the group falls to be disregarded under paragraph 7 above.

(3) Sub-paragraph (2) above does not apply in relation to an asset which is relevant business property by virtue only of paragraph 3(1)(c) above, but an asset is not relevant business property by virtue only of that paragraph unless either—

(a) it was used as mentioned in that paragraph throughout the two years immediately preceding the transfer of value ; or

(b) it replaced another asset so used and it and the other asset and any asset directly or indirectly replaced by that other asset were so used for periods which together comprised at least two years falling within the five years immediately preceding the transfer of value ;

but in a case where paragraph 5 above applies this condition shall be treated as satisfied if the asset (or it and the asset or assets replaced by it) was or were so used throughout the period between the earlier and the subsequent transfer mentioned in that paragraph (or throughout the part of that period during which it or they were owned by the transferor or the transferor's spouse).

(4) Where part but not the whole of any land or building is used exclusively for the purposes of any business and the land or building would, but for this sub-paragraph, be an excepted asset, or, as the case may be, prevented by sub-paragraph (3) above from being relevant business property, the part so used and the remainder shall for the purposes of this paragraph be treated as separate assets, and the value of the part so used shall (if it would otherwise be less) be taken to be such proportion of the value of the whole as may be just.

(5) For the purposes of this paragraph the relevant period, in relation to any asset, is the period immediately preceding the transfer of value during which the asset (or, if the relevant business property is an interest in a business, a corresponding interest in the asset) was owned by the transferor or, if the business concerned is that of a company, was owned by that company or any other company which immediately before the transfer of value was a member of the same group.

(6) For the purposes of this paragraph an asset shall be deemed not to have been used wholly or mainly for the purposes of the business concerned at any time when it was used wholly or mainly for the personal benefit of the transferor or of a person connected with him.