Value Added Tax Act 1994

3(1)An election under paragraph 2 above shall have effect—

(a)subject to the following provisions of this paragraph, from the beginning of the day on which the election is made or of any later day specified in the election; or

(b)where the election was made before 1st November 1989, from the beginning of 1st August 1989 or of any later day so specified.

(2)An election under paragraph 2 above shall have effect in relation to any land specified, or of a description specified, in the election.

(3)Where such an election is made in relation to, or to part of, a building (or planned building), it shall have effect in relation to the whole of the building and all the land within its curtilage and for the purposes of this sub-paragraph buildings linked internally or by a covered walkway, and [F1complexes consisting of a number of units grouped around a fully enclosed concourse], shall be taken to be a single building (if they otherwise would not be).

[F2(4)Subject to sub-paragraph (5) below, an election under paragraph 2 above shall be irrevocable.

(5)Where—

(a)the time that has elapsed since the day on which an election had effect is—

(i)less than 3 months; or

(ii)more than 20 years;

(b)in a case to which paragraph (a)(i) above applies—

(i)no tax has become chargeable and no credit for input tax has been claimed by virtue of the election; and

(ii)no grant in relation to the land which is the subject of the election has been made which, by virtue of being a supply of the assets of a business to a person to whom the business (or part of it) is being transferred as a going concern, has been treated as neither a supply of goods nor a supply of services; and

(c)the person making the election obtains the written consent of the Commissioners;

the election shall be revoked, in a case to which paragraph (a)(i) above applies, from the date on which it was made, and in a case to which paragraph (a)(ii) above applies, from the date on which the written consent of the Commissioners is given or such later date as they may specify in their written consent.]

[F3(5A)Where—

(a)an election under paragraph 2 above is made in relation to any land, and

(b)apart from this sub-paragraph, a grant in relation to that land would be taken to have been made (whether in whole or in part) before the time when the election takes effect,

that paragraph shall have effect, in relation to any supplies to which the grant gives rise which are treated for the purposes of this Act as taking place after that time, as if the grant had been made after that time.

(5B)Accordingly, the references in paragraph 2(9) above and sub-paragraph (9) below to grants being exempt or taxable shall be construed as references to supplies to which a grant gives rise being exempt or, as the case may be, taxable.]

[F2(6)An election under paragraph 2 above shall have effect after 1st March 1995 only if—

(a)in the case of an election made before that date—

(i)it also had effect before that date; or

(ii)written notification of the election is given to the Commissioners not later than the end of the period of 30 days beginning with the day on which the election was made, or not later than the end of such longer period beginning with that day as the Commissioners may in any particular case allow, together with such information as the Commissioners may require;

(b)in the case of an election made on or after that date—

(i)written notification of the election is given to the Commissioners not later than the end of the period of 30 days beginning with the day on which the election is made, or not later than the end of such longer period beginning with that day as the Commissioners may in any particular case allow, together with such information as the Commissioners may require; and

(ii)in a case in which sub-paragraph (9) below requires the prior written permission of the Commissioners to be obtained, that permission has been given.]

(7)In paragraph 2 above and this paragraph “relevant associate”, in relation to a body corporate by which an election under paragraph 2 above has been made in relation to any building or land, means a body corporate which under section 43—

(a)was treated as a member of the same group as the body corporate by which the election was made at the time when the election first had effect;

(b)has been so treated at any later time when the body corporate by which the election was made had an interest in, right over or licence to occupy the building or land (or any part of it); or

(c)has been treated as a member of the same group as a body corporate within paragraph (a) or (b) above or this paragraph at a time when that body corporate had an interest in, right over or licence to occupy the building or land (or any part of it).

[F4(7A)In paragraph 2 above—

(a)“houseboat” means a houseboat within the meaning of Group 9 of Schedule 8; and

(b)a houseboat is not a residential houseboat if residence in it throughout the year is prevented by the terms of a covenant, statutory planning consent or similar permission.]

(8)In paragraph 2 above “registered housing association” means a registered housing association within the meaning of the M1Housing Associations Act 1985 or Part VII of the M2Housing (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.

[F5(8A)For the purposes of paragraph 2 above-—

(a)any question whether a person is connected with another shall be determined in accordance with section 839 of the Taxes Act F6; and

(b)a person is a fully taxable person if at the end of the prescribed accounting period of his in which the grant is made he is entitled to credit for input tax on all supplies to, and acquisitions and importations by, him in that period (apart from any on which input tax is excluded from credit by virtue of section 25(7)).]

(9)Where a person who wishes to make an election in relation to any land (the relevant land) to have effect on or after 1st January 1992, has made, makes or intends to make, an exempt grant in relation to the relevant land at any time between 1st August 1989 and before the beginning of the day from which he wishes an election in relation to the relevant land to have effect, he shall not make an election in relation to the relevant land unless [F7the conditions for automatic permission specified in a notice published by the Commissioners are met or] he obtains the prior written permission of the Commissioners, who shall only give such permission if they are satisfied having regard to all the circumstances of the case and in particular to—

(a)the total value of exempt grants in relation to the relevant land made or to be made before the day from which the person wishes his election to have effect;

(b)the expected total value of grants relating to the relevant land that would be taxable if the election were to have effect; and

(c)the total amount of input tax which has been incurred on or after 1st August 1989 or is likely to be incurred in relation to the relevant land,

that there would be secured a fair and reasonable attribution of the input tax mentioned in paragraph (c) above to grants in relation to the relevant land which, if the election were to have effect, would be taxable.