Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988

584 Relief for unremittable overseas income

(1) Where a person is chargeable to tax by reference to the amount of any income arising in a territory outside the United Kingdom (“overseas income”), then for the purposes of tax this section shall apply to the overseas income in so far as—

(a) he is prevented from transferring the amount of the overseas income to the United Kingdom, either by the laws of that territory or any executive action of its government or by the impossibility of obtaining foreign currency in that territory; and

(b) he has not realised the overseas income outside that territory for a consideration in sterling or a consideration in some other currency which he is not prevented from transferring to the United Kingdom.

Overseas income to which this section applies is referred to below as unremittable.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, where a person so chargeable gives notice of his desire to be assessed in accordance with this subsection, then, in the first instance, account shall not be taken of the overseas income to the extent to which he shows to the satisfaction of the Board that the following conditions are satisfied with respect to it, that is to say—

(a) that it is unremittable; and

(b) that subsection (1)(a) above would continue to apply notwithstanding any reasonable endeavours on his part,

and tax shall be assessed and charged on all persons concerned and for all periods accordingly; but, on the Board ceasing, as respects any part of the income, to be satisfied that those conditions are satisfied, such assessments, reductions of assessments and repayments of tax shall be made as may be necessary to take account of it, and of any tax payable in respect of it under the law of the territory where it arises, according to their value at the date when, in the opinion of the Board, those conditions cease to be satisfied with respect to it, and may be so made at any time not later than six years after that date.

(3) Where the tax chargeable is corporation tax, subsection (2) above shall have effect as if—

(a) for the word “assessed” in the second place where it occurs, there were substituted “assessable”;

(b) for the words from “on the Board ceasing” to “take account” there were substituted “on the said conditions ceasing to be satisfied as respects any part of the income, it shall be treated as income arising on the date when those conditions cease to be satisfied with respect to it and account shall be taken”; and

(c) for the words from “the date” onwards there were substituted “that date”.

(4) Where a company becomes chargeable to corporation tax in respect of income from any source by virtue of subsections (2) and (3) above after it has ceased to possess that source of income, the income shall be chargeable under Case VI of Schedule D.

(5) Where under an agreement entered into under arrangements made by the Secretary of State in pursuance of section 11 of the [1978 c. 18.] Export Guarantees and Overseas Investment Act 1978 any payment is made by the Export Credit Guarantee Department in respect of any income which cannot be transferred to the United Kingdom, then, to the extent of the payment, the income shall be treated as income with respect to which the conditions mentioned in subsection (2) above are not satisfied (and accordingly cannot cease to be satisfied).

(6) Any notice under subsection (2) above shall be delivered to the inspector before an assessment made by reference to that income otherwise than in accordance with that subsection has become final and conclusive; and there shall be made all such assessments, reductions of assessments or repayments of tax as may be required by reason of any such notice.

(7) In the case of the death of a person who, if he had not died, would, under subsection (2) above, have become chargeable to any income tax, the tax which would have been so chargeable shall be assessed and charged upon his executors or administrators, and shall be a debt due from and payable out of his estate.

(8) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) above, the amount of any unremittable overseas income shall be determined by reference to the generally recognised market value in the United Kingdom (if any), or, in the absence of any such value, according to the official rate of exchange of the territory where the income arises.

(9) Any appeal against an assessment which involves a question as to the operation of this section shall be made to the Special Commissioners and not to the General Commissioners.

(10) This section shall have effect as respects any accounting period in which the conditions in subsection (2) above cease to be satisfied in relation to any income, being an accounting period ending on or before such day, not being earlier than 31st March 1992, as the Treasury may by order appoint for the purposes of this section, with the omission of subsections (3) and (4).