Alternative Finance Investment Bond (AFIB) meaning

Sukuk (singular form: ‘sakk’) Sukuk are Shari’a-compliant financing instruments, commonly described as Islamic certificates or bonds. For further detail, see Practice Notes: The structure and elements of a Sukuk transaction and Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment—What are sukuk? Where the statutory requirements are satisfied, sukuk can access the UK tax regime that applies to alternative finance investment bond (AFIB) arrangements. For guidance on those provisions, see Practice Note: Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment. A distinct variant is sukuk al ijara. In such structures, the bond-issuer (the legislative term for the sukuk issuer) typically holds land on trust for the certificate holders (the sukuk investors). The issuer secures a land interest through a sale and leaseback—the ijara element. For more detail, see Practice Notes: The structure and elements of a Sukuk transaction and Islamic finance standard documentation in the context of real estate finance transactions. The UK has issued sukuk al ijaras over land, most recently in March 2021. Since a sukuk...

Shari’a-compliant financing arrangements Shari’a‑compliant financing arrangements, otherwise described as Islamic financing arrangements, can be structured in a number of ways. To cater for the direct tax analysis of Shari’a financing variants, the UK has put in place specific provisions known as the alternative finance arrangement rules. The purpose of these UK rules is to ensure that, for direct tax purposes, a qualifying Shari’a‑compliant financing is taxed in the same manner as an equivalent conventional financing arrangement. Achieving that parity depends upon the arrangements meeting the relevant statutory conditions prescribed for alternative finance arrangements in the applicable legislation. Currently, the regime extends to five distinct categories of financing arrangement. Importantly, the direct tax framework for alternative finance is not limited solely to Islamic financing; non‑Shari’a structures can, in principle, be brought within its scope as well. Among the five categories is the investment bond arrangement, commonly known as an alternative finance investment bond, or AFIB. This Practice Note deals with AFIB arrangements. Sukuk, which are a type of Shari’a financing...

Sukuk Sukuk (singular: ‘sakk’) are a form of Shari’a‑compliant financing, commonly referred to as Islamic bonds or certificates. For further detail, see Practice Note: Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment—What are sukuk? Where the relevant conditions are met, sukuk can qualify for the UK tax treatment that applies to alternative finance investment bond (AFIB) arrangements. For the specific rules, see Practice Note: Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment... Sukuk al ijara Sukuk al ijara is a particular variant of sukuk. In a sukuk al ijara, the asset that the bond‑issuer (the term used in legislation for the sukuk issuer) holds on trust for the sukuk investors (the certificate holders) is typically land. The issuer acquires an interest in that land via a sale and leaseback—the sale and leaseback constitutes the ijara. For more information, see Practice Notes: Sukuk al ijara—tax reliefs for sale and leaseback arrangements—What is sukuk al ijara?, The structure and elements of a Sukuk transaction and Islamic finance...