178 Company ceasing to be member of group: pre-appointed day cases.U.K.
(1)If a company (“the chargeable company”) ceases to be a member of a group of companies, this section shall have effect as respects any asset which the chargeable company acquired from another company which was at the time of acquisition a member of that group of companies, but only if the time of acquisition fell within the period of 6 years ending with the time when the company ceases to be a member of the group; and references in this section to a company ceasing to be a member of a group of companies do not apply to cases where a company ceases to be a member of a group [F1in consequence of another member of the group ceasing to exist].
(2)Where 2 or more associated companies cease to be members of the group at the same time, subsection (1) above shall not have effect as respects an acquisition by one from another of those associated companies.
(3)If, when the chargeable company ceases to be a member of the group, the chargeable company, or an associated company also leaving the group, owns, otherwise than as trading stock—
(a)the asset, or
(b)property to which a chargeable gain has been carried forward from the asset on a replacement of business assets,
the chargeable company shall be treated for all the purposes of this Act as if immediately after its acquisition of the asset it had sold, and immediately reacquired, the asset at market value at that time.
(4)Where, apart from subsection (5) below, a company ceasing to be a member of a group by reason only of the fact that the principal company of the group becomes a member of another group would be treated by virtue of subsection (3) above as selling an asset at any time, subsections (5) and (6) below shall apply.
(5)The company in question shall not be treated as selling the asset at that time; but if—
(a)within 6 years of that time the company in question ceases at any time (“the relevant time”) to satisfy the following conditions, and
(b)at the relevant time, the company in question, or a company in the same group as that company, owns otherwise than as trading stock the asset or property to which a chargeable gain has been carried forward from the asset on a replacement of business assets,
the company in question shall be treated for all the purposes of this Act as if, immediately after its acquisition of the asset, it had sold and immediately reacquired the asset at the value that, at the time of acquisition, was its market value.
(6)Those conditions are—
(a)that the company is a 75 per cent. subsidiary of one or more members of the other group referred to in subsection (4) above, and
(b)that the company is an effective 51 per cent. subsidiary of one or more of those members.
(7)Where—
(a)by virtue of this section a company is treated as having sold an asset at any time, and
(b)if at that time the company had in fact sold the asset at market value at that time, then, by virtue of section 30, any allowable loss or chargeable gain accruing on the disposal would have been calculated as if the consideration for the disposal were increased by an amount,
subsections (3) and (5) above shall have effect as if the market value at that time had been that amount greater.
(8)For the purposes of this section—
(a)2 or more companies are associated companies if, by themselves, they would form a group of companies,
(b)a chargeable gain is carried forward from an asset to other property on a replacement of business assets if, by one or more claims under sections 152 to 158, the chargeable gain accruing on a disposal of the asset is reduced, and as a result an amount falls to be deducted from the expenditure allowable in computing a gain accruing on the disposal of the other property,
(c)an asset acquired by the chargeable company shall be treated as the same as an asset owned at a later time by that company or an associated company if the value of the second asset is derived in whole or in part from the first asset, and in particular where the second asset is a freehold, and the first asset was a leasehold and the lessee has acquired the reversion.
(9)If any of the corporation tax assessed on a company in consequence of this section is not paid within 6 months from the date when it becomes payable then—
(a)a company which on that date, or immediately after the chargeable company ceased to be a member of the group, was the principal company of the group, and
(b)a company which owned the asset on that date, or when the chargeable company ceased to be a member of the group,
may, at any time within 2 years from the time when the tax became payable, be assessed and charged (in the name of the chargeable company) to all or any part of that tax; and a company paying any amount of tax under this subsection shall be entitled to recover a sum of that amount from the chargeable company.
(10)Notwithstanding any limitation on the time for making assessments, an assessment to corporation tax chargeable in consequence of this section may be made at any time within 6 years from the time when the chargeable company ceased to be a member of the group, and where under this section the chargeable company is to be treated as having disposed of, and reacquired, an asset, all such recomputations of liability in respect of other disposals, and all such adjustments of tax, whether by way of assessment or by way of discharge or repayment of tax, as may be required in consequence of the provisions of this section shall be carried out.
Textual Amendments
F1Words in s. 178(1) substituted (retrosp.) by 1992 c. 48, s. 25(1)
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 178 excluded (27.7.1993) by 1993 c. 37, s. 12, Sch. 2 Pt. I paras. 4(1)
S. 178: modified (27.7.1993) by 1993 c. 37, s. 12, Sch. 2 Pt. I para. 4(2); modified (27.7.1993) by 1993 c. 37, s. 12, Sch. 2 Pt. I para. 5(2)