Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992

Reorganisation or reduction of share capital U.K.

126 Application of sections 127 to 131. U.K.

(1) For the purposes of this section and sections 127 to 131 “reorganisation” means a reorganisation or reduction of a company’s share capital, and in relation to the reorganisation—

(a) “original shares” means shares held before and concerned in the reorganisation,

(b) “new holding” means, in relation to any original shares, the shares in and debentures of the company which as a result of the reorganisation represent the original shares (including such, if any, of the original shares as remain).

(2) The reference in subsection (1) above to the reorganisation of a company’s share capital includes—

(a) any case where persons are, whether for payment or not, allotted shares in or debentures of the company in respect of and in proportion to (or as nearly as may be in proportion to) their holdings of shares in the company or of any class of shares in the company, and

(b) any case where there are more than one class of share and the rights attached to shares of any class are altered.

(3) The reference in subsection (1) above to a reduction of share capital does not include the paying off of redeemable share capital, and where shares in a company are redeemed by the company otherwise than by the issue of shares or debentures (with or without other consideration) and otherwise than in a liquidation, the shareholder shall be treated as disposing of the shares at the time of the redemption.

127 Equation of original shares and new holding. U.K.

Subject to sections 128 to 130, a reorganisation shall not be treated as involving any disposal of the original shares or any acquisition of the new holding or any part of it, but the original shares (taken as a single asset) and the new holding (taken as a single asset) shall be treated as the same asset acquired as the original shares were acquired.

128 Consideration given or received by holder. U.K.

(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, where, on a reorganisation, a person gives or becomes liable to give any consideration for his new holding or any part of it, that consideration shall in relation to any disposal of the new holding or any part of it be treated as having been given for the original shares, and if the new holding or part of it is disposed of with a liability attaching to it in respect of that consideration, the consideration given for the disposal shall be adjusted accordingly.

(2) There shall not be treated as consideration given for the new holding or any part of it—

(a) any surrender, cancellation or other alteration of the original shares or of the rights attached thereto, or

(b) any consideration consisting of any application, in paying up the new holding or any part of it, of assets of the company or of any dividend or other distribution declared out of those assets but not made,

and, in the case of a reorganisation on or after 10th March 1981, any consideration given for the new holding or any part of it otherwise than by way of a bargain made at arm’s length shall be disregarded to the extent that its amount or value exceeds the relevant increase in value; and for this purpose “the relevant increase in value” means the amount by which the market value of the new holding immediately after the reorganisation exceeds the market value of the original shares immediately before the reorganisation.

(3) Where on a reorganisation a person receives (or is deemed to receive), or becomes entitled to receive, any consideration, other than the new holding, for the disposal of an interest in the original shares, and in particular—

(a) where under section 122 he is to be treated as if he had in consideration of a capital distribution disposed of an interest in the original shares, or

(b) where he receives (or is deemed to receive) consideration from other shareholders in respect of a surrender of rights derived from the original shares,

he shall be treated as if the new holding resulted from his having for that consideration disposed of an interest in the original shares (but without prejudice to the original shares and the new holding being treated in accordance with section 127 as the same asset).

(4) Where for the purpose of subsection (3) above it is necessary in computing the gain or loss accruing on the disposal of the interest in the original shares mentioned in that subsection to apportion the cost of acquisition of the original shares between what is disposed of and what is retained, the apportionment shall be made in the like manner as under section 129.

129 Part disposal of new holding. U.K.

Subject to section 130(2), where for the purpose of computing the gain or loss accruing to a person from the acquisition and disposal of any part of the new holding it is necessary to apportion the cost of acquisition of any of the original shares between what is disposed of and what is retained, the apportionment shall be made by reference to market value at the date of the disposal (with such adjustment of the market value of any part of the new holding as may be required to offset any liability attaching thereto but forming part of the cost to be apportioned).

130 Composite new holdings. U.K.

(1) This section shall apply to a new holding—

(a) if it consists of more than one class of shares in or debentures of the company and one or more of those classes is of shares or debentures which, at any time not later than the end of the period of 3 months beginning with the date on which the reorganisation took effect, or of such longer period as the Board may by notice allow, had quoted market values on a recognised stock exchange in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, or

(b) if it consists of more than one class of rights of unit holders and one or more of those classes is of rights the prices of which were published daily by the managers of the scheme at any time not later than the end of that period of 3 months (or longer if so allowed).

(2) Where for the purpose of computing the gain or loss accruing to a person from the acquisition and disposal of the whole or any part of any class of shares or debentures or rights of unit holders forming part of a new holding to which this section applies it is necessary to apportion costs of acquisition between what is disposed of and what is retained, the cost of acquisition of the new holding shall first be apportioned between the entire classes of shares or debentures or rights of which it consists by reference to market value on the first day (whether that day fell before the reorganisation took effect or later) on which market values or prices were quoted or published for the shares, debentures or rights as mentioned in subsection (1)(a) or (1)(b) above (with such adjustment of the market value of any class as may be required to offset any liability attaching thereto but forming part of the cost to be apportioned).

(3) For the purposes of this section the day on which a reorganisation involving the allotment of shares or debentures or unit holders’ rights takes effect is the day following the day on which the right to renounce any allotment expires.

131 Indexation allowance. U.K.

(1) This section applies where—

(a) by virtue of section 127, on a reorganisation the original shares (taken as a single asset) and the new holding (taken as a single asset) fall to be treated as the same asset acquired as the original shares were acquired; and

(b) on the reorganisation, a person gives or becomes liable to give any consideration for his new holding or any part of it.

(2) Where this section applies, so much of the consideration referred to in subsection (1)(b) above as, on a disposal to which section 53 applies of the new holding, will, by virtue of section 128(1), be treated as having been given for the original shares, shall be treated for the purposes of section 54 as an item of relevant allowable expenditure incurred not at the time the original shares were acquired but at the time the person concerned gave or became liable to give the consideration (and, accordingly, section 54(4) shall not apply in relation to that item of expenditure).