Tax Relief

As part of the governments urban regeneration scheme (under the Finance Act 2001), a 150% tax relief scheme has been introduced on land remediation which includes buildings. So now the costs of asbestos removal can be set against company profits as tax relief.

For example, if £50,000 is spent on removing asbestos, £75,000 can be deducted from the property owner's taxable profits. It is also possible that part of our professional and survey fees and possibly, depending on the nature of the project, the reinstatement expenditure may also qualify.

Relief can be claimed on expenditure incurred from May 2001 but there are restrictions, including a requirement that those claiming relief were not the original polluters of the land. The claimant must also be a UK registered company.

The tax relief may improve the options when considering what actions to take when dealing with remediation of asbestos. The relief obviously should not determine the action taken, but any possibility of claiming it on replacement materials may change long-term objectives. The tax relief initiative is a major financial help for businesses.