Finance Act, 1959

Writing off of expenditure and meaning of “residue of expenditure” .

27.—(1) Any expenditure incurred on the construction of any building or structure shall be treated for the purposes of this Chapter to be written off to the extent and as at the times hereafter specified in this section, and references in this Chapter to the residue of any such expenditure shall be construed accordingly.

(2) If an industrial building allowance is made in respect of the expenditure, the amount of that allowance shall be written off as at the time when the building or structure is first used.

(3) If, by reason of the building or structure being at any time an industrial building or structure, an annual allowance is made for any year of assessment in respect of the expenditure, the amount of that allowance shall be written off as at the said time;

Provided that where at the said time an event occurs which gives rise or may give rise to a balancing allowance or balancing charge, the amount directed to be written off by this subsection as at the said time shall be taken into account in computing the residue of that expenditure immediately before that event for the purpose of determining whether any and if so what balancing allowance or balancing charge is to be made.

(4) If, in the case of any year of assessment after that in which the building or structure is first used, no annual allowance falls to be made to any person in respect of the expenditure, then, subject to the provisions of this and the next succeeding subsection, an amount equal to one-fiftieth of the expenditure shall be treated as written off as at the end of the previous year of assessment;

Provided that—

(a) in the case of a year of assessment beginning on or after the commencement of this Part of this Act, this subsection shall not apply for any purpose if the building or structure was an industrial building or structure on the day preceding the beginning of the year of assessment, and

(b) where this subsection does apply in the ease of a year of assessment beginning as aforesaid, the amount to be written off shall, if the building or structure has been sold on or after the 15th day of April, 1959, while an industrial building or structure, be the amount which would have fallen to be written off if—

(i) the building or structure had been an industrial building or structure in use on the said preceding day for the purposes of a trade carried on by a person entitled to the relevant interest in the building or structure,

(ii) the basis period of that person for the year of assessment had ended on the said preceding day, and

(iii) an annual allowance had been made to him for the year of assessment accordingly.

(5) If, on the occasion of a sale, a balancing allowance is made in respect of the expenditure, there shall be written off as at the time of the sale the amount by which the residue of the expenditure before the sale exceeds the net proceeds of the sale.

(6) If, on the occasion of a sale, a balancing charge is made in respect of the expenditure, the residue of the expenditure shall be deemed for the purposes of this Chapter to be increased as at the time of the sale by the amount on which the charge is made.