Capital Allowances Act 2001

Buildings in use for the purposes of a qualifying trade

274 Trades and undertakings which are “qualifying trades”

(1) “Qualifying trade” means—

(a) a trade of a kind described in Table A, or

(b) an undertaking of a kind described in Table B, if the undertaking is carried on by way of trade.

Table A

Trades which are “qualifying trades”

1.	Manufacturing	A trade consisting of manufacturing goods or materials.
2.	Processing	A trade consisting of subjecting goods or materials to a process.
		This includes (subject to section 276(3)) maintaining or repairing goods or materials.
3.	Storage	A trade consisting of storing goods or materials— (a) which are to be used in the manufacture of other goods or materials, (b) which are to be subjected, in the course of a trade, to a process, (c) which, having been manufactured or produced or subjected, in the course of a trade, to a process, have not yet been delivered to any purchaser, or (d) on their arrival in the United Kingdom from a place outside the United Kingdom.
4.	Agricultural contracting	A trade consisting of— (a) ploughing or cultivating land occupied by another, (b) carrying out any other agricultural operation on land occupied by another, or (c) threshing another’s crops.
		For this purpose “crops” includes vegetable produce.
5.	Working foreign plantations	A trade consisting of working land outside the United Kingdom used for— (a) growing and harvesting crops, (b) husbandry, or (c) forestry.
For this purpose “crops” includes vegetable produce and “harvesting crops” includes the collection of vegetable produce (however effected).
6.	Fishing	A trade consisting of catching or taking fish or shellfish.
7.	Mineral extraction	A trade consisting of working a source of mineral deposits.“Mineral deposits” includes any natural deposits capable of being lifted or extracted from the earth, and for this purpose geothermal energy is to be treated as a natural deposit.“Source of mineral deposits” includes a mine, an oil well and a source of geothermal energy.

Table B

Undertakings which are “qualifying trades” if carried on by way of trade

1.	Electricity	An undertaking for the generation, transformation, conversion, transmission or distribution of electrical energy.
2.	Water	An undertaking for the supply of water for public consumption.
3.	Hydraulic power	An undertaking for the supply of hydraulic power.
4.	Sewerage	An undertaking for the provision of sewerage services within the meaning of the Water Industry Act 1991 (c. 56).
5.	Transport	A transport undertaking.
6.	Highway undertakings	A highway undertaking, that is, so much of any undertaking relating to the design, building, financing and operation of roads as is carried on— (a) for the purposes of, or (b) in connection with, the exploitation of highway concessions.
7.	Tunnels	A tunnel undertaking.
8.	Bridges	A bridge undertaking.
9.	Inland navigation	An inland navigation undertaking.
10.	Docks	A dock undertaking.
		A dock includes— (a) any harbour, and (b) any wharf, pier, jetty or other works in or at which vessels can ship or unship merchandise or passengers, other than a pier or jetty primarily used for recreation.

(2) Item 6 of Table B needs to be read with Chapter 9 (application of this Part to highway undertakings).

275 Building used for welfare of workers

A building is in use for the purposes of a qualifying trade if it is—

(a) provided by the person carrying on the qualifying trade for the welfare of workers employed in that qualifying trade, and

(b) in use for the welfare of such workers.

276 Parts of trades and undertakings

(1) Sections 274 and 275 apply in relation to part of a trade or undertaking as they apply in relation to a trade or undertaking.

But this is subject to subsections (2) and (3).

(2) If—

(a) a building is in use for the purpose of a trade or undertaking, and

(b) part only of the trade or undertaking is a qualifying trade,

the building is in use for the purposes of the qualifying trade only if it is in use for the purposes of that part of the trade or undertaking.

(3) Maintaining or repairing goods or materials is not a qualifying trade if—

(a) the goods or materials are employed in a trade or undertaking,

(b) the maintenance or repair is carried out by the person employing the goods or materials, and

(c) the trade or undertaking is not itself a qualifying trade.

277 Exclusion of dwelling-houses, retail shops, showrooms, hotels and offices etc.

(1) A building is not in use for the purposes of a qualifying trade if it is in use as, or as part of, or for any purpose ancillary to the purposes of—

(a) a dwelling-house;

(b) a retail shop, or premises of a similar character where a retail trade or business (including repair work) is carried on;

(c) a showroom;

(d) a hotel;

(e) an office.

(2) Subsection (3) is about buildings constructed for occupation by, or for the welfare of persons employed—

(a) on, or in connection with, working land outside the United Kingdom which is used as described in item 5 of Table A in section 274 (foreign plantations), or

(b) at, or in connection with, working a source of mineral deposits as defined in item 7 of Table A (mineral extraction).

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to a building which this subsection is about if the building—

(a) is likely to be of little or no value to the person carrying on the trade when the land or source is no longer worked, or

(b) will cease to be owned by that person on the ending of a foreign concession under which the land or source is worked.

(4) “Foreign concession” means a right or privilege granted by the government of, or any municipality or other authority in, a territory outside the United Kingdom.

(5) Subsection (1) is subject to section 283 (non-industrial part of building disregarded).

278 Building used by more than one licensee

A building used by more than one licensee of the same person is not in use for the purposes of a qualifying trade unless each licensee uses it, or the part to which the licence relates, for the purposes of a qualifying trade.