52First-year allowances
(1)A person is entitled to a first-year allowance in respect of first-year qualifying expenditure if—
(a)the expenditure is incurred in a chargeable period to which this Act applies, and
(b)the person owns the plant or machinery at some time during that chargeable period.
(2)Any first-year allowance is made for the chargeable period in which the first-year qualifying expenditure is incurred.
(3)The amount of the allowance is a percentage of the first-year qualifying expenditure in respect of which the allowance is made, as shown in the Table—
Table
Amount of first-year allowances
| Type of first-year qualifying expenditure | Amount |
|---|---|
| Expenditure qualifying under section 40 (expenditure incurred for Northern Ireland purposes by small or medium-sized enterprises) | 100% |
| Expenditure qualifying under section 44 (expenditure incurred by small or medium-sized enterprises) | 40% |
| Expenditure qualifying under section 45 (ICT expenditure incurred by small enterprises) | 100% |
(4)A person who is entitled to a first-year allowance may claim the allowance in respect of the whole or a part of the first-year qualifying expenditure.
(5)Subsection (1) needs to be read with section 236 (first-year allowances in respect of additional VAT liabilities) and is subject to—
section 205 (reduction of first-year allowance if plant or machinery provided partly for purposes other than those of qualifying activity),
section 210 (reduction of first-year allowance if it appears that a partial depreciation subsidy is or will be payable), and
sections 217, 223 and 241 (anti-avoidance: no first-year allowance in certain cases).