Get 150% Tax Relief on Asbestos Removal with Land Remediation Relief

If you’re planning to remove asbestos from a commercial property, there’s a government-backed tax incentive that could help to cut your costs. It’s called Land Remediation Relief (LRR). It allows UK companies to claim 150% tax relief on asbestos removal work.

It’s not very well known, but for eligible businesses, this scheme can mean big tax savings or even a cash tax credit if you’re making a loss, so it’s worth checking if you’re eligible.

Land Remediation Relief (LRR) is a tax relief scheme for UK companies that clean up contaminated commercial land. Under this scheme, you can deduct up to 150% of qualifying asbestos removal costs from your taxable profits.

So, if you spend £20,000 removing asbestos from a commercial site, you could deduct £30,000 from your profits before tax.

Find out more on the .gov website: https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/corporate-intangibles-research-and-development-manual/cird60050

To qualify for the 150% tax relief:

• The land must be commercial and have been acquired in a contaminated state
• The asbestos contamination must be the result of past industrial activity
• The land must have been bought from an unconnected party
• Your company must carry out the asbestos removal or containment work
• The asbestos contamination must pose a risk to health or the environment

Note: You won’t qualify if your company was responsible for the contamination.

The scheme is only available to companies; unfortunately, this doesn’t extend to individuals or partnerships. Could could qualify if you’re a:

• Commercial landlord
• Property developer
• Businesses purchasing industrial sites for redevelopment

If your company is subject to UK corporation tax, and you’re remediating asbestos from land you’ve acquired, this relief could apply.

If you’re eligible for the scheme the qualifying costs include:

• Surveying or testing for asbestos
• Removing asbestos from structures or soil
• Transporting and disposing of asbestos waste in compliance with regulations
• Contractor and consultant fees related to asbestos remediation

This deduction lowers your taxable profits, reducing your corporation tax bill. If your company makes a loss, you can surrender the loss for a cash tax credit from HMRC.

• You must elect to treat capital expenditure as a deduction within 2 years of the end of the accounting period
• Claims are submitted through your company’s Corporation Tax Self-Assessment
• There’s no special form required the claim can be made through your tax computation

If your company wants to treat capital expenditure as a deduction, you must make a formal election to do so. This election must be made within two years from the end of the relevant accounting period in which the expenditure was incurred. Missing this deadline could mean losing out on valuable tax relief, so it’s important to plan ahead and keep accurate records of your capital spending.

The process for making a claim is handled through your company’s Corporation Tax Self-Assessment. This is the standard method by which companies report their taxable profits and calculate the tax owed to HMRC. Including your claim in this return ensures it’s properly accounted for as part of your overall tax position.

There isn’t a special form or separate document required for the claim itself. Instead, the election to deduct capital expenditure can be made directly within your company’s tax computation. It’s important that this is clearly presented and supported by the relevant figures, so that HMRC can easily understand the basis of your claim.

If you’re planning or have already carried out asbestos removal on land you’ve recently acquired for commercial use, you could be entitled to claim 150% tax relief through Land Remediation Relief.

It’s one of the few schemes that directly rewards environmental clean-up, while improving your bottom line.

At Smart Asbestos Services, we’re not just licensed asbestos removal experts, we also help our clients understand how their removal project could qualify for Land Remediation Relief.

Contact us today to speak with our team about safe, compliant asbestos removal and how to maximise your tax savings. If you need to find out if your office, warehouse or commercial property contains asbestos, we’ll perform a survey and test for you to find out.