Income Tax Act 2007 (c. 3)

Part 8 U.K. Other reliefs

[F1 CHAPTER 1A U.K. Irrecoverable peer-to-peer loans

Textual Amendments

F1 Pt. 8 Ch. 1A inserted (15.9.2016) by Finance Act 2016 (c. 24), s. 32(2)

Interpretation U.K.

412I Meaning of “loan”, “peer-to-peer loan” and related terms U.K.

(1) This section applies for the purposes of this Chapter.

(2) “Loan” means a loan of money which—

(a) is made on genuine commercial terms, and

(b) is not part of a scheme or arrangement the main purpose or one of the main purposes of which is to obtain a tax advantage (within the meaning given by section 208 of the FA 2013).

(3) A loan is a “peer-to-peer loan” only if it meets—

(a) Condition A or B, and

(b) Condition C.

(4) Condition A is that the person who made the loan is—

(a) an individual,

(b) a partnership which consists of—

(i) two or three persons, and

(ii) at least one person who is not a body corporate, or

(c) an unincorporated body of persons which—

(i) is not a partnership, and

(ii) consists of at least one person who is not a body corporate.

(5) Condition B is that—

(a) the recipient of the loan is a person within paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (4), and

(b) the loan is a personal or small loan.

(6) Condition C is that, assuming interest were paid on the loan, the person who made the loan would (except for this Chapter) be liable for income tax charged on the interest.

(7) “Personal loan” means a loan which is not used wholly or predominantly for the purposes of a business carried on, or intended to be carried on, by the recipient of the loan.

(8) “Small loan” means a loan of £25,000 or less.

412J Meaning of “operator” and related terms U.K.

(1) This section applies for the purposes of this Chapter.

(2) “Operator” means a person who—

(a) has permission under Part 4A of FISMA 2000 to carry on a regulated activity specified in Article 36H of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001 (S.I. 2001/544) (operating an electronic system in relation to lending), or

(b) has been granted equivalent permission under the law of a territory outside the United Kingdom that is within the European Economic Area.

(3) A loan is “made through” an operator if the person who makes the loan and the recipient of the loan enter the agreement under which the loan is made at the invitation of the operator.

(4) A right is “assigned through” an operator if the person who assigns the right and the person to whom the right is assigned enter the agreement under which the assignment takes effect at the invitation of the operator.

(5) A person is not to be treated as having entered an agreement at the invitation of an operator if the operator made the invitation otherwise than in the course of carrying on the activity to which the permission mentioned in subsection (2)(a) or (b) relates.]