Important Update: See details of Upper-tier Tribunal ruling here
The taxpayers, challenged an HMRC decision to deny business property relief (BPR) on their late mother’s share of a property. The property was let fully furnished as a holiday home.
The case (N V Pawson (deceased) (TC1748)) was heard by the First-tier Tribunal, who accepted the property had been run as a business for the requisite two years before the taxpayer’s death. It had been profitable for two of the three years before the mother died and the tribunal was therefore satisfied that the business was being run with a view to gain.
It was then necessary for the tribunal to decide whether the business was one that consisted wholly or mainly of the holding of an investment, with the judge concluding that, “an intelligent businessman would not regard the ownership of a holiday letting property as an investment as such and would regard it as involving far too active an operation for it to come under that heading”.
The property was a business asset being used to provide a service and was not equivalent to holding an investment; the taxpayer’s appeal was therefore allowed.
The case will be of interest to taxpayers operating holiday rentals where the activities can be shown to constitute a business.
