Finance Act 1981

Restriction of carry forward of unused relief

17(1)Where a company incurs a loss in an accounting period there shall not be carried forward under section 177(1) of the Taxes Act to a subsequent accounting period so much of that loss as consists of relief under this Part of this Schedule for an accounting period which ended six years or more before the beginning of that subsequent accounting period.

(2)For the purposes of this paragraph the loss incurred by a company in an accounting period shall be taken to consist of—

(a)the loss, if any, incurred in the trade in that period (calculated without regard to capital allowances or relief under this Part of this Schedule);

(b)the capital allowances for the accounting period less the amount of the profit, if any, that accrued from the trade in that period (calculated without regard to capital allowances or relief under this Part of this Schedule); and

(c)the relief under this Part of this Schedule for the accounting period less so much of the profit referred to in paragraph (b) above as remains after deducting the capital allowances referred to in that paragraph.

(3)Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, where by virtue of section 177(2) of the Taxes Act (set off against profits), section 254 of that Act (set off against franked investment income) or section 258 of that Act (group relief) a loss falls to be set off against an amount of profits or franked investment income of an accounting period but the loss exceeds that amount, the part of the loss that is so set off shall for the purposes of tins paragraph be taken to consist—

(a)first of the loss, if any, referred to in sub-paragraph (22a) above;

(b)next of the capital allowances referred to in sub-paragraph (2)(b) above; and

(c)lastly of the relief referred to in sub-paragraph (2)(c) above.

(4)Where subsection (3A) of the said section 177 applies, the part of the loss referred to in sub-paragraph (3) above shall be attributed first to the additional amount allowed by virtue of that subsection under subsections (2) and (3) of that section and then as provided by sub-paragraph (3) above (excluding that amount from paragraph (b)).

(5)Where by virtue of section 177(1) of the Taxes Act (carry forward of losses) any amount in respect of a loss or losses incurred by a company falls to be set off against the company's trading income in an accounting period but that amount exceeds that income, the part of the amount that is set off shall for the purposes of this paragraph be taken to consist—

(a)first of capital allowances for previous accounting periods ending not earlier than 14th November 1980 ;

(b)next of relief under this Part of this Schedule, taking relief in respect of a later period of account before relief in respect of an earlier one ;

(c)next of losses incurred in the trade in previous accounting periods ending not earlier than 14th November 1980 (calculated without regard to capital allowances or rebel falling within paragraphs (a) and (b) above) and including any losses treated under section 254(5) of the Taxes Act as incurred in such accounting periods ; and

(d)lastly of other losses, capital allowances and reliefs.

(6)In this paragraph references to relief under this Part of this Schedule for an accounting period are to relief in respect of any period of account falling wholly within the accounting period and to a proportionate part of the relief in respect of any period of account falling partly within it.