s455 CTA2010 Tax Charge

s455 CTA2010 tax charge is applicable when a company gives a loan to its directors or employees and it is not repaid within nine months and one day of the accounting year end. The current rate for the tax charge is 32.5% from 6 April 2016 for all relevant loans made or benefits conferred by close companies.

S455 tax is only due on the new loan, not the total outstanding loan. The charge applies to a debt created or loan made in an accounting period (AP) rather than the total amount outstanding at the end of the AP (although the two amounts may well be the same, particularly in the first AP).

There is no minimum exempt amount for the controlling directors or participators (who owns more than 5% of the ordinary share capital) of a close company. So any loans taken out will be subject to the tax charge if not repaid within the time period.

However, where a close company makes a loan or advance for any purpose to a relevant person who is also a director or employee of the close company or of any associated company, that loan or advance is not within CTA10/S455 if all the following conditions are satisfied:

• the amount of the loan in question plus the outstanding amounts of loans made to the borrower does not exceed £15,000 (Condition A), and
• the borrower works full time for the close company or any of its associated companies (Condition B), and
• the borrower does not have a material interest in the close company or any of its associated companies (Condition C)

When deciding whether the limit of an individual employee has been reached, do not take loans to the spouse into account.

Where both husband and wife are directors or employees, they will each be entitled to a separate limit of £15,000.