Structure strictures

KEY POINTS

• The basic business property relief rules.
• The rules and case law.
• A checklist.
• Groups and 'deep' groups.
• Split shareholdings.

Since the abolition of taper relief in April 2008 we have lost the historic tension that could sometimes arise regarding whether to structure groups of companies in a way that would qualify for capital gains tax taper relief or for inheritance tax business property relief (BPR).

While the taper relief rules are still relevant to establish eligibility for substantial shareholdings relief many companies are now giving BPR structuring more attention. As are HMRC which announced on 1 May 2008 that for an initial six-month period they would give non-statutory clearances in relation to BPR.

The first part of this article looks at the main conditions...