Finance Act 2004

147 Immediate needs annuities

(1) The Taxes Act 1988 is amended as follows.

(2) In section 431 (interpretative provisions relating to insurance companies) in subsection (2) (interpretation for purposes of Chapter 1 of Part 12) in the definition of “annuity business”, at the end insert “, other than the business of granting immediate needs annuities (within the meaning of section 580C)”.

(3) After section 580B insert—

“580C Relief from tax on annual payments under immediate needs annuities

(1) No liability to income tax arises in respect of a relevant annual payment made under an immediate needs annuity to the extent that—

(a) it is made for the benefit of the person protected under the immediate needs annuity, and

(b) it is made to a care provider or a local authority in respect of the provision of care for the person protected.

(2) In this section “relevant annual payment” means an annual payment which—

(a) would (apart from this section) be brought into charge under Case III of Schedule D, or

(b) is equivalent to a description of payment brought into charge under Case III of that Schedule but would (apart from this section) be brought into charge under Case V of that Schedule.

(3) In this section “immediate needs annuity” means a contract for a life annuity—

(a) the purpose, or one of the purposes, of which is to protect a person against the consequences of his being unable, at the time the contract is made, to live independently without assistance because of—

(i) mental or physical impairment, or

(ii) injury, sickness or other infirmity,

which is expected to be permanent, and

(b) under which benefits are payable in respect of the provision of care for the person protected.

(4) In this section “care provider” means a person who carries on a trade, profession or vocation which consists of or includes the provision of care and who—

(a) in relation to care provided in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, is registered under the relevant enactment in respect of the provision of care;

(b) in relation to care provided in Scotland, provides care which is registered under the relevant enactment;

(c) in relation to care provided in a territory outside the United Kingdom, satisfies comparable requirements under the law of that territory relating to the provision of care.

(5) In this section “the relevant enactment” means—

(a) in relation to England and Wales, Part 2 of the Care Standards Act 2000,

(b) in relation to Scotland, Part 1 of the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001,

(c) in relation to Northern Ireland, Part 2 or 3 of the Registered Homes (Northern Ireland) Order 1992 or Part 3 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Quality, Improvement and Regulation) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003.

(6) In this section “care” means accommodation, goods or services which it is necessary or desirable to provide to a person because of—

(a) mental or physical impairment, or

(b) injury, sickness or other infirmity,

which is expected to be permanent.

(7) In this section “life annuity” means an annuity to which section 656 (read with section 657) applies.

(8) The Treasury may by order amend—

(a) the definition of “immediate needs annuity” in subsection (3) above;

(b) the definitions of “care provider” in subsection (4) above and of “the relevant enactment” in subsection (5) above.”.

(4) The amendment made by subsection (2) has effect in relation to accounting periods beginning on or after 1st January 2005.

(5) For the purposes of section 547(5A)(b) of the Taxes Act 1988 (chargeable event gains: method of charging gain to tax), an immediate needs annuity made before 1st January 2005 shall not be taken, by virtue of the amendment made by subsection (2), to fall or to have at any time fallen to be regarded as not forming part of an insurance company or friendly society’s basic life assurance and general annuity business the income and gains of which are subject to corporation tax.

(6) The amendment made by subsection (3) has effect in relation to annual payments made on or after 1st October 2004 (whenever the immediate needs annuity in question was made).