Finance Act 1980

114 Advance assessment of tax on deemed disposals

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a person who has a major interest in any land and intends to begin a project of material development on that land or any part of it may give a notice to the Board—

(a) specifying the project; and

(b) electing to be assessed and charged with development land tax in accordance with this section in respect of the deemed disposal which will be occasioned by the beginning of that project.

(2) Any notice under this section shall contain such information as the Board may reasonably require for the purposes of this section and shall be in such form as they may prescribe.

(3) Where a person has given a notice under this section in respect of a project—

(a) he may be assessed and charged with development land tax in respect of the deemed disposal referred to in subsection (1)(b) above before the project is begun; and

(b) the tax shall be so assessed and charged by reference to the market value of his interest at the date of the notice; and

(c) section 5 of the Development Land Tax Act 1976 and paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 to that Act shall apply as if the project had been begun on that date.

(4) If a person who has given a notice in respect of a project under this section begins that project within the period of two years beginning with the date of the notice the tax with which he is chargeable in respect of the deemed disposal referred to in subsection (1)(b) above shall be that assessed and charged on him in accordance with subsection (3) above; but if he does not begin that project within that period the notice shall be void.

(5) A notice under this section shall also be void if any information contained in it is not such as to make full and accurate disclosure of all facts and considerations which are material for tax to be assessed and charged in pursuance of the notice ; and a notice under this section may be withdrawn at any time before the project in question is begun.

(6) A notice under this section shall not affect the time when any tax is payable except that where the tax has been assessed and charged in pursuance of such a notice paragraph 45 of Schedule 8 to the said Act of 1976 shall have effect as if—

(a) sub-paragraph (2A) were omitted, and

(b) in sub-paragraph (3)(c) for the words “nine years” there were substituted the words “eight years ”.

(7) A person who has given a notice under this section (including a notice which has become void or which has been withdrawn) in respect of a project on any land shall not be entitled to give another notice in respect of that or any other project on that land or any part of it.

(8) Where a notice under this section becomes void or is withdrawn any assessment made in pursuance of it shall be of no effect and where a person has paid any tax as a result of a notice under this section which has become void or which has been withdrawn, the tax shall be repaid to him with interest at the rate for the time being prescribed for the purposes of section 86A of the [1970 c. 9.] Taxes Management Act 1970; and any such interest shall not be income of that person for any tax purposes.

(9) Where a person who has a major interest in land gives a notice under subsection (1) above in respect of a project in respect of which a person having a different interest has given a notice in the previous two years (whether or not the previous notice has become void or been withdrawn), the first-mentioned notice shall be treated for the purposes of subsection (4) above as if given on the date of the previous notice or if there has been more than one previous notice the date of the first of them.

(10) For the purposes of subsections (4) and (7) of this section companies which are members of the same group shall be treated as the same person; and references in this section to a person beginning a project include references to his causing or permitting another person to do so.

(11) Nothing in this section affects the value for which a person is deemed to have reacquired an interest on a deemed disposal of it.

(12) This section shall be construed as one with the said Act of 1976.