Finance Act 2012

Transfers of BLAGAB

128 Relief for transferee in respect of transferor’s BLAGAB expenses

(1) This section applies if, under an insurance business transfer scheme, there is a transfer of basic life assurance and general annuity business (or any part of that business) from one insurance company to another.

(2) Acquisition expenses relief is to be given to the transferee for any acquisition expenses for which, on the assumptions set out below, that relief would have been given to the transferor for an accounting period starting after the date of the transfer.

(3) “Acquisition expenses relief” means relief given, in accordance with section 79 (spreading of acquisition expenses), at step 3 in section 76.

(4) For the transferee’s first accounting period ending after the date of the transfer, acquisition expenses relief for the acquisition expenses within subsection (2) is to be determined as if that period had started with the date after the date of the transfer.

(5) Relief at step 5 in section 76 is to be given to the transferee for any excess BLAGAB expenses for which, on the assumptions set out below, that relief would have been given to the transferor for an accounting period starting after the date of the transfer.

(6) For the purposes of this section it is to be assumed that—

(a) the transferor had continued to carry on the transferred business after the transfer, and

(b) the transferor had an accounting date ending with the date of the transfer (if that would not otherwise be the case).

(7) If the transfer is a transfer of part of the business, references in this section to any expenses are to be read as references to the appropriate part of the expenses.

(8) Any relief given to the transferee as a result of this section is instead of any relief that would otherwise have been given to the transferor.

129 Intra-group transfers and demutualisation

(1) This section applies if—

(a) under an insurance business transfer scheme, there is a transfer of basic life assurance and general annuity business (or any part of that business) from one insurance company to another, and

(b) the transfer is a relevant intra-group transfer or is in connection with a demutualisation.

(2) A transfer is a “relevant intra-group transfer” if—

(a) the transferor and transferee are members of the same group of companies when the transfer occurs, and

(b) the transferee is within the charge to corporation tax in relation to the transfer.

(3) A transfer is “in connection with a demutualisation” if—

(a) it is for the purposes of the conversion of a company (under the law of any territory) from one without share capital to one with share capital (without any change of legal personality), or

(b) it is a transfer by a mutual life insurance company of all, or substantially all, of its basic life assurance and general annuity business to an insurance company which is not a mutual life insurance company,

and for the purposes of paragraph (b) a “mutual life insurance company” means an insurance company which carries on mutual life assurance business.

(4) For the purpose of calculating the BLAGAB trade profit or loss of the transferor for any accounting period, any amount in respect of the transfer that is debited or credited in accounts drawn up by the transferor in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice is to be ignored.

(5) For the purpose of calculating the BLAGAB trade profit or loss of the transferee for any accounting period, any amount in respect of the transfer that is debited or credited in accounts drawn up by the transferee in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice is to be ignored.

(6) But if there is a difference between—

(a) the net amount recognised by the transferee in respect of the transfer of contracts of long-term insurance or contracts made in the course of capital redemption business, and

(b) the net amount recognised by the transferor in respect of the transfer of those contracts,

the amount of the difference is to be taken into account for the purpose of calculating the BLAGAB trade profit or loss of the transferee for the accounting period in which those contracts are transferred.

(7) The difference is to be taken into account—

(a) as a receipt (if, when added to the net amount in subsection (6)(b), the result is the net amount in subsection (6)(a)), and

(b) as an expense (if, when subtracted from the net amount in subsection (6)(b), the result is the net amount in subsection (6)(a)).

(8) The net amount recognised by an insurance company in respect of the transfer of the contracts is determined by subtracting—

(a) the total amount in respect of liabilities relating to the contracts that is or would be recognised for the purposes of a balance sheet drawn up at the relevant time by the company in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice, from

(b) the total amount in respect of assets relating to the contracts that is or would be recognised for those purposes,

and “the relevant time” means the time immediately before the transfer (in the case of the transferor) and the time immediately after it (in the case of the transferee).

(9) The Treasury may by order amend any of subsections (6) to (8).

(10) This section does not apply to any amount that arises in respect of a transfer so far as the transfer consists of a with-profits fund transfer.

The reference here to a with-profits fund transfer is a reference to—

(a) a transfer of business from a with-profits fund to a fund that is not a with-profits fund, or

(b) a transfer of business from a fund that is not a with-profits fund to a with-profits fund.

(11) If this section applies, the provisions of Part 4 of TIOPA 2010 (transfer pricing) do not apply.

130 Transfers between non-group companies: present value of in-force business

(1) This section applies if—

(a) under an insurance business transfer scheme, there is a transfer of basic life assurance and general annuity business (or any part of that business) from one insurance company to another,

(b) either the transferor and transferee are not members of the same group of companies when the transfer occurs or, if they are, the transfer consists of or includes a with-profits fund transfer within the meaning of section 129(10),

(c) the accounts of the transferee drawn up in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice include an asset that represents, as at the time of the transfer, the value of future profits arising from the relevant transferred business, and

(d) the asset is not one to which Part 8 of CTA 2009 (intangible fixed assets) applies.

(2) Amounts in respect of the asset that are debited or credited in accounts drawn up by the transferee in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice are to be taken into account in calculating the BLAGAB trade profit or loss of the transferee.

(3) In subsection (1)(c) “the relevant transferred business” means—

(a) if the transferor and transferee are not members of the same group of companies when the transfer occurs, the business (or part of the business) transferred under the insurance business transfer scheme, and

(b) if the transfer consists of or includes a with-profits fund transfer, the business transferred by the with-profits fund transfer.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (1)(c) no account is to be taken of an asset so far as it is regarded for accounting purposes as internally-generated.

(5) This section does not apply so far as section 129(5) applies in relation to the transfer.

(6) Nothing in this section is to apply in relation to transfers taking place before 1 January 2013.