Finance Act 2003

Part 1Group life policies

Exception of certain group life policies from Chapter 2 of Part 13

1(1)Section 539 of the Taxes Act 1988 (introductory) is amended as follows.

(2)In subsection (2) (policies and contracts to which the Chapter does not apply) at the end of paragraph (d) add “; or

(e)to any group life policy having as its sole object the provision, on the death or disability of any of the individuals insured under the policy, of a sum substantially the same as any amount then outstanding under a loan made by a credit union to that individual; or

(f)to any group life policy with respect to which the conditions in section 539A are satisfied (“an excepted group life policy”).”.

(3)In subsection (3) (defined expressions) insert each of the following definitions at the appropriate place—

““credit union” means a society registered as a credit union under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965 or the Credit Unions (Northern Ireland) Order 1985;”;

““excepted group life policy” shall be construed in accordance with subsection (2)(f) above;”;

““group life policy” means a policy of life insurance whose terms provide—

(a)for the payment of benefits on the death of more than one individual; and

(b)for those benefits to be paid on the death of each of those individuals;”.

Excepted group life policies

2After section 539 of the Taxes Act 1988 insert—

“539AThe conditions for being an excepted group life policy

(1)The conditions mentioned in section 539(2)(f) (excepted group life policies) are those set out in the following provisions of this section.

(2)Condition 1 is that under the terms of the policy a sum or other benefit of a capital nature is payable or arises on the death of each of the individuals insured under the policy who dies without attaining an age which is specified in the policy and is not greater than 75 years.

In determining whether this condition is satisfied, disregard any terms of the policy which exclude from benefit the death of a person in specified circumstances, if the exclusion applies in relation to death in those circumstances in the case of each of the individuals insured under the policy.

(3)Condition 2 is that under the terms of the policy—

(a)the same method is to be used for calculating the sums or other benefits of a capital nature payable or arising on each death, and

(b)if there is any limitation on those sums or other benefits, the limitation is the same in the case of any death.

(4)Condition 3 is that the policy does not have, and is not capable of having, on any day—

(a)a surrender value that exceeds the proportion of the premiums paid which, on a time apportionment, is referable to the unexpired paid-up period beginning with that day, or

(b)if there is no such period, any surrender value.

For the purposes of this subsection the unexpired paid-up period beginning with any day is the period (if any) which—

(i)begins with that day, and

(ii)ends with the earliest subsequent day on which—

(a)a payment of premium falls due under the policy, or

(b)the term of the policy ends.

(5)Condition 4 is that no sums or other benefits may be paid or conferred under the policy, except as mentioned in condition 1 or condition 3.

(6)Condition 5 is that any sums payable or other benefits arising under the policy must (whether directly or indirectly) be paid to or for, or conferred on, or applied at the direction of—

(a)an individual or charity beneficially entitled to them, or

(b)a trustee or other person acting in a fiduciary capacity who will secure that the sums or other benefits are paid to or for, or conferred on, or applied in favour of, an individual or charity beneficially.

In this subsection “charity” means any body of persons or trust established for charitable purposes only.

(7)Condition 6 is that no person—

(a)who is an individual whose life is insured under the policy, or

(b)who is, within the meaning of section 839, connected with an individual whose life is so insured,

may, by virtue of a group membership right relating to that individual, receive (directly or indirectly) any death benefit in respect of another group member.

In this subsection—

(i)“group membership right”, in relation to an individual, means any right (including the right of any person to be considered by trustees in their exercise of a discretion) that is referable to that individual’s being one of the individuals whose lives are insured by the policy; and

(ii)“death benefit in respect of another group member” means—

(a)any sums or other benefits payable or arising under the policy on the death of any other of those individuals, or

(b)anything representing any such sums or benefits.

(8)Condition 7 is that a tax avoidance purpose is not the main purpose, or one of the main purposes, for which a person is at any time—

(a)the holder, or one of the holders, of the policy, or

(b)the person, or one of the persons, beneficially entitled under the policy.

In this subsection—

(i)“tax avoidance purpose” means any purpose that consists in securing a tax advantage (whether for the holder of the policy or any other person); and

(ii)“tax advantage” has the same meaning as in Chapter 1 of Part 17 (tax avoidance).”.

Retrospective exception of past and present pure protection group life policies

3(1)For the purposes of Chapter 2 of Part 13 of the Taxes Act 1988 (and any former enactment that is re-enacted in that Chapter), any event happening before 9th April 2003 in relation to a policy of life insurance which, at the time of the event, was a pure protection group life policy shall be deemed not to have been a chargeable event.

(2)For the purposes of this paragraph a policy of life insurance is at any time a pure protection group life policy if at that time it is a group life policy whose terms do not provide for any sums or other benefits to be paid or conferred except on death or disability.

Existing group life policies: time for compliance with the conditions in section 539A

4(1)Where—

(a)on 9th April 2003 a policy of life insurance issued in respect of an insurance made before that date is a group life policy but the conditions in section 539A of the Taxes Act 1988 are not satisfied,

(b)on or after that date, the terms of the policy are varied so that those conditions are satisfied before 6th April 2004, and

(c)during the period beginning with 9th April 2003 and ending with the date when the variation takes effect (“the transitional period”), no sums become payable, and no other benefits arise, under the policy except on death or disability,

the conditions in section 539A of the Taxes Act 1988 shall be taken for the purposes of Chapter 2 of Part 13 of the Taxes Act 1988 to have been satisfied with respect to the policy throughout the transitional period.

(2)Where, for the purposes of Chapter 2 of Part 13 of the Taxes Act 1988,—

(a)on 9th April 2003 a policy of life insurance issued in respect of an insurance made before that date (“the old policy”) is a group life policy but the conditions in section 539A of the Taxes Act 1988 are not satisfied,

(b)on or after that date, the terms of the insurance are varied solely for the purpose of securing that those conditions are satisfied before 6th April 2004 with respect to a policy in respect of the insurance, and

(c)as a result of the variation, the old policy is replaced by a new policy (“the new policy”),

sub-paragraph (3) applies.

(3)Where this sub-paragraph applies—

(a)the old policy and the new policy shall be treated for the purposes of—

(i)paragraph 3(1),

(ii)sub-paragraph (1), and

(iii)Chapter 2 of Part 13 of the Taxes Act 1988,

as a single policy issued in respect of an insurance made at the time of the making of the insurance in respect of which the old policy was issued, and

(b)that deemed single policy shall be treated for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) as if the variation mentioned in sub-paragraph (2)(b) had been a variation of its terms taking effect on the date on which that variation takes effect (but not resulting in the replacement of the deemed single policy).

Deaths before 6th April 2004: period for insurer to give certificate under section 552(1)(a)

5(1)If any death giving rise to benefits under a group life policy occurs—

(a)on or after 9th April 2003, but

(b)before 6th April 2004,

subsection (6) of section 552 of the Taxes Act 1988 (relevant three month period for insurer to give certificate under section 552(1)(a) to policy holder) shall have effect in relation to that policy and that death as if there were included among the paragraphs of that subsection the unnumbered paragraph set out in sub-paragraph (2).

(2)That paragraph is—

“( )if the event is a death and the policy in question is a group life policy, the period of three months following 5th April 2004;”.