Corporation Tax Act, 1976

Distributions.

64.—(1) This section applies to a distribution (hereafter in this section referred to as a relevant distribution) made, or deemed to have been made, by a company for an accounting period wholly or in part out of—

(a) the company's income for that accounting period the corporation tax in respect of which has been reduced under this Part, or

(b) a distribution or distributions received by the company in that accounting period in respect of which the tax credit is determined in accordance with this section.

(2) Where a relevant distribution is made or is deemed for the purposes of this section to have been made by a company for an accounting period, the tax credit to which the recipient of the relevant distribution is entitled in respect of it shall be an amount arrived at by applying a fraction determined by the formula /images/en.act.1976.0007.sec64.1.jpg to the amount of the relevant distribution

where—

A is an amount arrived at by applying to the amount of the company's distributable income for the accounting period, excluding distributions received by the company in that period, the fraction /images/en.act.1976.0007.sec64.2.jpg where D is the standard rate per cent. for the year of assessment in which the relevant distribution is made reduced in the same proportion as the company's liability to corporation tax on its income for the accounting period is reduced under section 58, subject to paragraph (c) of the proviso to section 182 (3) (transitional relief for income tax losses, etc.) and paragraph (iii) of the proviso to section 184 (3) (relief in respect of corporation profits tax losses),

B is the aggregate of the tax credits in respect of the amount referred to in subsection (4) (b), and

C is the amount of the company's distributable income for the accounting period.

(3) For the purposes of this section—

(a) where the total amount of the distributions made by a company for an accounting period exceeds the distributable income of the company for that accounting period, the excess shall be deemed for the purposes of this section to be a distribution for the immediately preceding accounting period;

(b) where the total amount of the distributions made or deemed under paragraph (a) to have been made by a company for the immediately preceding accounting period exceeds the distributable income of the company for that accounting period, the excess shall be deemed to be a distribution for the next immediately preceding accounting period and so on.

(c) where the total amount of the distributions made or deemed under this subsection to have been made for the first accounting period for which the company came within the charge to corporation tax exceeds the distributable income of the company for that accounting period—

(i) the excess shall be deemed to be a distribution for the company's period of account which ended on the accounting date last before the 6th day of April, 1975, or, if there was no such period of account, to be a distribution for the year which ended on the 5th day of April, 1976, and

(ii) the tax credit in respect of the excess which is so deemed shall be an amount equal to the amount of income tax which, under section 410 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , the company would have been entitled to deduct from a dividend of such an amount as after deduction of that tax would equal the amount of the excess and for this purpose it shall be assumed that the dividend was paid on the 5th day of April, 1976, and was in respect of the said period of account or year which ended on the 5th day of April, 1976, as the case may be.

(4) For the purposes of this section the distributable income of a company for an accounting period shall be the aggregate of the following amounts—

(a) the income of the company charged to corporation tax for the accounting period as defined in section 28 (8) less the amount of corporation tax payable by the company for the accounting period which is attributable to that income, and

(b) an amount equal to the distributions received by the company in the accounting period which is comprised in its franked investment income of the accounting period, other than franked investment income against which relief is given under section 15 (4), 25 or 26, and which relief was not subsequently withdrawn under the provisions of those sections.

(5) Where a period of account for or in respect of which a company makes a distribution is not an accounting period and part of the period of account falls within an accounting period, the proportion of the distribution to be treated for the purposes of this section as being for or in respect of the accounting period shall be the same proportion as the said part of the period of account bears to the whole of that period.

(6) Where a company makes a distribution which is not expressed to be for or in respect of a specified period the distribution shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having been made for the accounting period in which it is made.

(7) Where the income of a company for an accounting period includes a dividend from which income tax was deducted under section 456 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , then for the purposes of this section the amount of tax so deducted shall be deemed to be a tax credit in respect of a distribution of an amount equal to the amount of the dividend reduced by the amount of tax so deducted.

(8) In relation to a relevant distribution (other than a supplementary distribution under section 65), section 5 (dividend warrants) and section 83 (5) (Schedule F) shall apply so that the statements provided for by those sections shall show, in addition to the particulars to be given apart from this section, the amount of the tax credit which would apply in respect of the distribution if it were not a relevant distribution.

(9) The inspector may by notice in writing require a company to furnish him with such information or particulars as may be necessary for the purposes of this section and if the company does not comply with the requirements of the notice it shall be liable to a penalty of £100.