Capital Gains Tax Act, 1975

PART VI

Unit Trusts

Unit trusts.

31.—(1) Without prejudice to the provisions of section 15 (settled property), chargeable gains accruing to a unit trust in any year of assessment shall be assessed and charged on the trustees of the unit trust.

(2) The trustees of a unit trust shall for the purposes of this Act be treated as being a single and continuing body of persons (distinct from the persons who may from time to time be the trustees) and that body shall be treated as being resident and ordinarily resident in the State unless the general administration of the unit trust is ordinarily carried on outside the State and the trustees or a majority of them for the time being are not resident or not ordinarily resident in the State.

(3) Where a person receives or becomes entitled to receive in respect of units in a unit trust any capital distribution from the unit trust, he shall be treated as if he had, in consideration of that capital distribution, disposed of an interest in the units.

(4) If throughout a year of assessment all the issued units in a unit trust are assets such that any gain accruing if they were disposed of by the unit holder would be wholly exempt from capital gains tax (otherwise than by reason of residence), gains accruing to the unit trust in that year shall not be chargeable gains.

(5) If throughout a year of assessment all the assets of a unit trust are such that they are not chargeable assets or are assets in respect of which a gain would not be a chargeable gain, the units in the unit trust shall be deemed not to be chargeable assets for the purposes of this Act.

(6) In this section “capital distribution” means any distribution from a unit trust, including a distribution in the course of terminating the unit trust, in money or money's worth except a distribution which in the hands of the recipient constitutes income for the purposes of income tax and in section 32 “distribution of capital” shall be construed in accordance with this definition.