Explanatory Notes

Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005

2005 CHAPTER 5

24 March 2005

Commentary on Sections

Part 4: Savings and investment income

Chapter 12: Disposals of futures and options involving guaranteed returns
Section 564: Deemed disposal where futures run to delivery or options are exercised

2212.This section provides that futures which are allowed to run to delivery and option contracts which are exercised will be treated as disposals for the purposes of this Chapter if they would not otherwise be disposals under this Chapter. Paragraph 94 of Schedule 2 to this Act ensures that these transactions are not disposals if they took place before 6 February 1998. This section is based on paragraph 4A of Schedule 5AA to ICTA.

2213.Subsections (2) and (3) provide the conditions that must apply for there to be a deemed disposal. There must be two or more related transactions (section 566 explains what is meant by a related transaction). One of these must be the creation or acquisition of a future or option and the other the running to delivery of that future or exercise of that option but which is not already a disposal for the purposes of this Chapter.

2214.Under subsection (4) a disposal is deemed to have taken place the moment before the future runs to delivery or the option is exercised and that disposal is deemed to be a disposal provided for in a scheme or arrangements.

2215.Both parties to the future or option are affected by the deemed disposal.

2216.Under subsection (5) the person whose rights and entitlements have a value immediately before the option is deemed to dispose of that right or those rights for their market value. Thus the same disposal proceeds are deemed to arise as if the person had disposed of the contract to another and a profit or gain had arisen in those circumstances.

2217.Under subsections (6) and (7) any other party to the future or option is deemed to have received nothing on the disposal but to have incurred costs equal to the amount the person would have been expected to pay in an arm’s length transaction for the release of the person’s obligations under the contract.

2218.Subsection (8) requires that section 144(2) and (3) of TCGA should be disregarded in applying subsections (1) to (3). This is because under these two subsections of section 144 of TCGA (applicable as a result of section 562 (when disposals of futures or options occur: general)) the grant and exercise of an option are treated as a single transaction (to enable the premium to be set against the disposal proceeds). But, in order for this section to apply, subsections (1) to (3) require two related transactions, the creation of the future or option and its running to completion or being exercised, so those two transactions must not be taken to be a single transaction.