Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 Schedule 5 paragraph 8

Qualifying companies: introduction

Schedule 5, paragraph 8 introduces the concept of a "qualifying company" for the purposes of share incentive plans, setting out the seven requirements that must all be satisfied at the appropriate time.

• A qualifying company must meet seven specific requirements covering independence, subsidiaries, property management, gross assets, employee numbers, trading activities, and UK permanent establishment.
• All seven requirements must be satisfied at the appropriate time — it is not sufficient to meet only some of them.
• This paragraph serves as an introductory overview; the detailed rules for each requirement are found in subsequent paragraphs of the Schedule.
• A company that fails any one of these tests will not be regarded as a qualifying company for the purposes of the tax-advantaged share scheme provisions.