Property option

My client is a property company. The directors/shareholders would like to ensure that future growth in the property assets accrues directly to them personally.

But they don’t have the resources to buy the properties out at the moment even leaving aside the corporation tax TA 1988 s 419 and stamp duty land tax costs which would be incurred.

They have the idea that they might have the company grant them options to buy the properties at today’s market value with a view to deferring exercise of the options until a third party sale is in prospect.

I note that in the case of ‘long options’ over shares (where a tax charge used in principle to arise on grant) it was HMRC’s practice that ‘no self assessment need be made on the grant of an option if the option is granted at a price equal to...