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 Company Formation Home Page >> Starting Limited Liability Partnership Formations Guide >> REV BN 14: LLPREV BN 14: LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIPS. SUMMARY OF MEASURES Proposals to prevent tax loss, including through investment and property investment LLPs, and to confirm the general tax rules which ensure that Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) are taxed as partnerships were announced today. This builds on the proposals that were offered for comment in the Pre-Budget Report. The proposals will have effect from 6 April 2001 when LLPs become available.
FURTHER DETAILS LLPs have been developed to combine organisational flexibility with the benefits of limited liability, thus providing a modern alternative business structure. This is expected to be particularly attractive to professional partnerships. In order to ensure that the commercial choice between using a LLP or a partnership is not distorted, the LLP will in general be treated for tax purposes as a business carried on by partners in a partnership, rather than a body corporate. To ensure that this new structure does not lead to tax loss when used as an alternative to existing business structures, legislation will be introduced to: define "investment LLP" and "property investment LLP", building on the current definition of "investment company". Remove exemptions for income and gains from property investment LLPs for pension funds, the pension business of life insurance companies and the tax exempt business of friendly societies where the income and gains are received in their capacity as a member of a property investment LLP. Remove interest relief for investments in investment LLPs so that individuals will not be able to claim tax relief for the interest paid on monies borrowed to invest in an investment LLP. The Government will also bring forward any legislation necessary to ensure that LLPs are in general treated as partnerships for tax purposes. This will clarify the existing rules at section 118ZA ICTA 1988 and section 59A TCGA 1992 to ensure the rules fully achieve their purpose, and will confirm that the general tax treatment of LLPs carrying out a trade or profession is in accord with the guidance issued in Tax Bulletin in December 2000.
BACKGROUND NOTES The legislative framework for LLPs is set out in the Limited Liability Partnership Act 2000. The Act introduced tax legislation to ensure that in general LLPs would be taxed as partnerships rather than as corporate bodies. During the passage of that Act, in response to concerns about the potential for tax loss, a review was announced into the taxation of LLPs. Following this review, the Government confirmed, in the Pre-Budget Report news release issued on 8 November 2000 (Inland Revenue 5), that in general LLPs would be taxed as partnerships and invited comments on proposed rules to prevent tax loss. In deciding to proceed with the rules announced today, the Government took into consideration the comments which have been received and for which it is grateful.
 
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