Business Premises Renovation Allowances (BPRA) consultation
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will be conducting a technical review of the BPRA legislation, with a view to making its policy purpose even clearer.
On 18 July, following a written statement by the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, David Gauke, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) published a Technical Note inviting comments from interested parties “on possible ways in which the policy purpose underlying Business Premises Renovation Allowance (BPRA) might be made clearer in the relevant legislation, so that the scheme may be made simpler and more certain in its application, at the same time reducing the risks of exploitation”.
The Technical Note contained proposals to:
- limit ‘qualifying expenditure’ to actual works and directly associated services and restrict the relief available for project management fees
- prevent tax relief being available unless the building has been unused for a year at the time the expenditure is incurred
- prevent abuse brought about by “pre-paying” and claiming upfront tax relief on works not carried out for some time, if ever
- introduce a targeted anti-avoidance rule (TAAR)
The Technical Note invited interested parties to respond to these proposals by 30 September 2013.