Section 371VH | Interests in companies

(1)This section applies for the purposes of this Part.

(2)The following persons have an “interest” in a company—

(a)any person who has, or is entitled to acquire, share capital or voting rights in the company,

(b)any person who has, or is entitled to acquire, a right to receive or participate in distributions of the company,

(c)any person who is entitled—

(i)to direct how income or assets of the company are to be applied,

(ii)to have such income or assets applied on the person's behalf, or

(iii)otherwise to secure that such income or assets will be applied (directly or indirectly) for the person's benefit, and

(d)any other person who, either alone or together with other persons, has control of the company.

(3)In subsection (2) references to a person being entitled to do anything cover cases in which—

(a)a person is presently entitled to do it at a future date, or

(b)a person will at a future date be entitled to do it.

(4)In subsection (2)(c) references to a person being entitled to do anything also cover cases in which it is reasonable to suppose that a person is presently able, or will at a future date become able, to do the thing (even though the person presently has, or will have, no entitlement to do the thing).

(5)Subsection (6) applies if a person's entitlement (or supposed ability) to do anything mentioned in subsection (2)(c) is (or would be) contingent upon a default of the company or any other person under any agreement.

(6)The person is not to have an interest in the company under subsection (2)(c) by virtue of that entitlement (or supposed ability) unless the default has occurred.

(7)Rights which a person has as a loan creditor of a company are to be ignored for the purposes of subsection (2).

(8)In subsection (7)—

“loan creditor” has the meaning given by section 453 of CTA 2010, but ignoring subsection (4) of that section, and

“rights” does not include any rights excluded from subsection (7) by subsection (10).

(9)Subsection (10) applies if, in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice, a loan creditor divides its rights and liabilities under a loan relationship to which it is a party as mentioned in section 415(1) of CTA 2009 (loan relationships with embedded derivatives)....

(10)Any rights falling within section 415(1)(b) of CTA 2009 are to be excluded from subsection (7).

(10A)For the purposes of subsection (9), if for any relevant period accounts for a loan creditor are not prepared in accordance with international accounting standards or UK generally accepted accounting practice, any question relating to generally accepted accounting practice is to be determined in relation to the loan creditor for that period by reference to generally accepted accounting practice in relation to accounts prepared in accordance with international accounting standards.

(11)Subsections (12) and (13) apply if—

(a)apart from subsection (12), a person has, or two or more persons together have, an interest in a company (“company 1”), and

(b)company 1 has an interest in another company (“company 2”).

(In paragraph (b) “interest” includes an interest by virtue of subsection (12).)

(12)The person or persons mentioned in subsection (11)(a) are to be taken to have an interest in company 2 (and references to a person's interest in a company are to be read accordingly).

(13)For the purposes of references to one person's interest in a company being the same as another person's interest—

(a)the person mentioned in subsection (11)(a), or

(b)each of the persons so mentioned,

is to be taken as having, to the extent of that person's interest in company 1, the same interest as company 1 has in company 2.

(14)If two or more persons jointly have an interest in a company otherwise than in a fiduciary or representative capacity, they are taken to have the interest in equal shares.