34Conditional exemption for certain buildings etc. on death
(1)Where any of the following property was included in the estate of a person immediately before his death, that is to say—
(a)land which in the opinion of the Treasury is of outstanding scenic or historic or scientific interest;
(b)a building for the preservation of which special steps should in the opinion of the Treasury be taken by reason of its outstanding historic or architectural interest;
(c)land which adjoins such a building as is mentioned in paragraph (b) above and which in the opinion of the Treasury is essential for the protection of the character and amenities of the building, or,
(d)an object which in the opinion of the Treasury is historically associated with such a building as is mentioned in paragraph (b) above ;
the Treasury may, on a claim made for the purpose, designate the property as property to which this section applies.
(2)Where, with respect to any property to which this section applies, an undertaking is given, by such person as the Treasury think appropriate in the circumstances of the case, that, until the person entitled to the property dies or the property is disposed of, whether by sale or gift or otherwise, reasonable steps will be taken—
(a)in the case of land falling within subsection (1)(a) above, for the maintenance of the land and the preservation of its character ; and
(b)in the case of any other property, for the maintenance, repair and preservation of the property and, if it is an object falling within subsection (1)(d) above, for keeping it associated with the building concerned;
and for securing reasonable access to the public, the value of the property shall be left out of account in determining for the purposes of this Part of this Act the value transferred by the transfer of value made on the death of the person mentioned in subsection (1) above (in this section referred to as the value transferred on his death).
(3)Where, under subsection (2) above, the value of any property has been left out of account and the Treasury are satisfied that at any time the undertaking given under that subsection in respect of that property has not been observed in a material respect, then, subject to subsection (5) below, tax shall be chargeable in accordance with subsection (7) or (8) below with respect to the property and any property associated with it, and the person liable for the tax shall be the person who, if the property were sold at the time the tax becomes chargeable, would be entitled to receive (whether for his benefit or not) the proceeds of sale or any income arising from them.
(4)Where, under subsection (2) above, the value of any property has been left out of account in determining the value transferred on the death of any person and—
(a)subsection (3) above does not apply ; but
(b)the property is disposed of, whether on sale or otherwise,
then, subject to subsections (5) and (6) below, tax shall be chargeable in accordance with subsection (7) or (8) below with respect to the property and any property associated with it, and the person liable for the tax shall be the person for whose benefit the property is disposed of; but where the value of the property has been left out of account on the death of more than one person the tax chargeable under this subsection shall be chargeable only by reference to the last death.
(5)The Treasury may direct that the tax chargeable under this section on a failure to observe an undertaking with respect to any property or on the disposal of any property shall be chargeable with respect only to that property, if it appears to them that the entity consisting of the building, land and objects concerned has not been materially affected.
(6)Tax shall not be chargeable under subsection (4) above with respect to any property—
(a)on its being sold by private treaty to a body mentioned in paragraph 12 of Schedule 6 to this Act or on its being disposed of to such a body otherwise than by sale; or,
(b)if it is disposed of otherwise than by sale and the undertaking previously given with respect to it is replaced by a further undertaking under subsection (2) above;
and for the purposes of subsection (4) above the acceptance of any property under paragraph 17 of Schedule 4 to this Act shall not be treated as a disposal of the property.
(7)Where, under this section, tax becomes chargeable with respect to any property within three years of the death on which its value has been left out of account—
(a)the value of the property (at the time of the death) shall no longer be left out of account and tax shall be chargeable on the value transferred on the death as if this section had never applied to the property; and
(b)the tax chargeable under this section with respect to the property shall be so much of the tax chargeable on the value transferred on the death as is attributable to the value restored under this subsection.
(8)Where, under this section, tax with respect to any property becomes chargeable more than three years after the death, the tax shall be so much of the tax that would have been chargeable on the value transferred on the death as would have been attributable to the value of the property if—
(a)this section had not applied to the property; and
(b)the value of the property at the time of the death had been equal to its value at the time the tax becomes chargeable and, if it becomes chargeable on a sale, that value had been equal to the proceeds of sale.
(9)For the purposes of this section two or more properties are associated with each other if one of them is a building falling within subsection (1)(b) above and the other or others such land or objects as, in relation to that building, fall within subsection (1)(c) or (d) above.