{ "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/income-tax-trading-and-other-income-act-2005/section-539", "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/income-tax-trading-and-other-income-act-2005/section-539.json", "legislation": "ukpga/2005/5", "legislation_title": "Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005", "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/income-tax-trading-and-other-income-act-2005", "path": "section/539", "kind": "section", "number": "539", "heading": "Relief for deficiencies", "text": "(1) An individual is entitled to a tax reduction for a tax year in which a deficiency arises from a policy or contract on a chargeable event if—\n(a) the condition in subsection (2) is met,\n(b) the individual would (apart from this section) be liable to income tax at one or more relevant rates for the tax year, and\n(c) the individual makes a claim.\n(2) The condition is that, if a gain had arisen instead on the chargeable event—\n(a) the individual would have been liable to income tax on the gain for the year, or\n(b) the individual would have been so liable apart from the requirement in section 465(1) that the individual must be UK resident in the tax year in which the gain arises.\n(3) The tax reduction is given effect at Step 6 of the calculation in section 23 of ITA 2007.\n(4) See section 540 for the cases in which a deficiency is treated as arising from a policy or contract on a chargeable event, section 541 for how the deficiency is calculated and section 469(5) for the apportionment of deficiencies in cases where two or more persons are interested in a policy or contract.\n(5) The amount of the tax reduction is calculated as follows.\nStep 1\nDetermine the amount of the individual’s income for the tax year that is liable at each relevant rate.\nStep 2\nAttribute the amount or amounts determined at Step 1 to the deficiency, so far as possible.\nStep 3\nCalculate the amount of the individual’s preliminary income tax liability for the tax year (see subsection (6)).\nStep 4\nCalculate the amount of the individual’s preliminary income tax liability for the tax year again, on the assumption that each amount determined under Step 1, so far as attributed to the deficiency at Step 2, is liable at the appropriate lower rate.\nStep 5\nDeduct the amount found at Step 4 from the amount found at Step 3. The result is the amount of the tax reduction.\n(6) The individual's preliminary income tax liability is the amount found by calculating the individual's income tax liability in accordance with section 23 of ITA 2007, ignoring Steps 6 and 7 of that calculation.\n(7) In this section—\n(a) “relevant rate” means a rate mentioned in the first column of the Table;\n(b) “the appropriate lower rate”, in relation to an amount of the individual’s income for the tax year that is liable at a relevant rate, means the rate mentioned in the second column of the Table in the same row as that relevant rate.\n(8) Here is the Table referred to in subsection (7)—\nRelevant rate\nThe appropriate lower rate\nthe higher rate\nthe basic rate\nthe default higher rate\nthe default basic rate\nthe property higher rate\nthe property basic rate\nthe savings higher rate\nthe savings basic rate\nthe dividend upper rate\nthe dividend ordinary rate\nthe Scottish higher rate\nthe Scottish basic rate\nthe Scottish advanced rate\nthe Scottish basic rate\nthe Welsh higher rate\nthe Welsh basic rate\nthe Welsh property higher rate\nthe Welsh property basic rate\n(9) Where—\n(a) it is possible to carry out Step 2 in subsection (5) by attributing amounts in more than one way, and\n(b) the tax reductions, calculated under that subsection by carrying out that Step in those ways, are of different amounts,\nStep 2 is to be carried out in the way that results in the highest tax reduction.", "extent": "E+W+S+N.I.", "status": null, "version": "current", "annotations": [ { "type": "F", "label": "F1", "text": "S. 539 substituted (6.4.2007 with effect as stated in s. 1034(1) of the amending Act) by Income Tax Act 2007 (c. 3), ss. 1027, 1034, Sch. 1 para. 539 (with transitional provisions and savings in Sch. 2)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F2", "text": "Words in s. 539(1)(b) substituted (with effect in accordance with art. 1(2) of the amending S.I.) by The Scottish Rate of Income Tax (Consequential Amendments) Order 2015 (S.I. 2015/1810), arts. 1(1), 9(2)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F3", "text": "Words in s. 539(1)(b) substituted (5.12.2024 for the tax year 2024-25 and subsequent tax years) by The Scottish Rates of Income Tax (Consequential Amendments) Order 2024 (S.I. 2024/1289), arts. 1(1), 2(2)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F4", "text": "S. 539(5) substituted (5.12.2024 for the tax year 2024-25 and subsequent tax years) by The Scottish Rates of Income Tax (Consequential Amendments) Order 2024 (S.I. 2024/1289), arts. 1(1), 2(3)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F5", "text": "S. 539(7)-(9) substituted for s. 539(7) (5.12.2024 for the tax year 2024-25 and subsequent tax years) by The Scottish Rates of Income Tax (Consequential Amendments) Order 2024 (S.I. 2024/1289), arts. 1(1), 2(4)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F6", "text": "Words in s. 539(8) inserted (for the tax year 2027-28 and subsequent tax years) by Finance Act 2026 (c. 11), s. 6(8), Sch. 1 para. 49(a)" }, { "type": "F", "label": "F7", "text": "Words in s. 539(8) inserted (for the tax year 2027-28 and subsequent tax years) by Finance Act 2026 (c. 11), s. 6(8), Sch. 1 para. 49(b)" } ], "outstanding_effects": [], "provenance": { "source": "legislation.gov.uk", "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/5/section/539", "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T09:16:32.370392+00:00" }, "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0", "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/", "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives." }