BPRA – It’s not too late to claim

The Business Premises Renovation Allowance (BPRA) came to an end on 1 April 2017 for limited companies and 5 April for unincorporated individual businesses and partnerships. Taxpayers may be under the impression this means that they can no longer claim, however this is not the case. The April 2017 deadline simply means that only expenditure incurred up to this date can be claimed. 
James Greenhalgh, Tax Director at Cowgill Holloway, explains BPRA and why you could still be eligible to submit a claim.
The relief allows businesses or investors to claim tax allowances of up to 100% of the expenditure incurred when business premises are converted or renovated in an ‘assisted’ area, many of which are in the North West. Retrospective claims can be still be made for past expenditure, in some cases up to three years after the initial spend.
A useful postcode checker map for the assisted areas can be found on the government website: http://www.ukassistedareasmap.com/ieindex.html
The relief has often been overlooked but can be extremely valuable where the whole or part of a former commercial or office building, which has been out of use for over 12 months, is refurbished and brought back into use either as an investment property or for use in a business. Refurbishment works undertaken on the structure of the building as well as internal reconfigurations may qualify..
BPRA is a valuable but under used allowance even though claims for clients can be particularly substantial – we’ve achieved reclaims of £150k, resulting in a £30k saving of corporation tax, and another £427k deduction which resulted in an £85k reduction in corporation tax.
If you have made past investments in unused commercial property please contact James Greenhalgh on 01204 414243 to discuss whether your expenditure could qualify for BPRA.  Even if you do not qualify for BPRA there are other capital allowances and reliefs for which you may be eligible for. We have specialists at Cowgill Holloway who can advise on your specific circumstances.
 

This article is for general guidance only. It provides an outline, and may not include points which are important to your situation. You should not depend on this blog without taking advice based on the full facts of your case. The information given was correct at the time of publication.