Finance Act 1997

Purpose of this Part of this Schedule

1 (1) This Part of this Schedule is concerned with arrangements—

(a) which involve the lease of an asset;

(b) which are or have been entered into by companies or other persons;

(c) which are of such a kind as, in the case of companies incorporated in any part of the United Kingdom, falls for the purposes of accounts of such companies to be treated in accordance with normal accountancy practice as finance leases or loans; and

(d) whose effect is that some or all of the return on investment in respect of the finance lease or loan—

(i) is or may be in the form of a sum which is not rent; and

(ii) would not, apart from this Schedule, be wholly brought into account for tax purposes as rent from the lease.

(2) The principal purpose of this Part of this Schedule is, in the case of any such arrangements,—

(a) to charge any person entitled to the lessor’s interest under the lease of the asset to tax from time to time on amounts of income determined by reference to those which fall for accounting purposes to be treated in accordance with normal accountancy practice as the income return, on and after 26th November 1996, on investment in respect of the finance lease or loan (taking into account the substance of the matter as a whole, including in particular the state of affairs as between connected persons, or within a group of companies, as reflected or falling to be reflected in accounts of any of those persons or in consolidated group accounts);

(b) where the sum mentioned in sub-paragraph (1)(d) above falls due, to recover by reference to that sum the whole or any part of any reliefs, allowances or deductions which are or have been allowed or made in respect of capital expenditure incurred in respect of the leased asset.