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Access all documents on Sukuk (singular sakk)

Sukuk (singular sakk) meaning

What does Sukuk (singular sakk) mean?
Sukuk (singular sakk) are Sharia-compliant investment certificates used to raise finance without interest. In legal practice they evidence investors’ undivided ownership or beneficial interest in identified assets, usufruct or an investment venture, with periodic distributions generated from those assets or profits and a redemption amount at maturity, rather than interest on a debt. Issues are commonly structured through an SPV holding the assets on trust and issuing certificates, using forms such as ijara (lease), murabaha (sale) or mudaraba/musharaka (profit-sharing). Credit analysis turns on the nature of investors’ recourse (asset-based versus asset-backed) and any purchase undertaking from the obligor. The term is a market description, not generally defined in UK or Irish company law. UK tax legislation refers to sukuk-type instruments as alternative finance investment bonds and provides broadly debt-like tax treatment. Irish tax rules similarly aim for neutrality for Sharia-compliant financing. Across England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland, securities, listing and prospectus regimes typically apply in line with conventional debt capital markets, while property, trust and security law, and stamp/transfer taxes, may require jurisdiction-specific structuring to ensure asset transfer, perfection and insolvency remoteness.
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View the related Practice Notes about Sukuk (singular sakk)

PRACTICE NOTES
UK tax reliefs for sukuk al ijara sale and leaseback of land under FA 2009 Schedule 61: SDLT, CGT and capital allowances—structure, conditions and anti-avoidance

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...

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PRACTICE NOTES
Sukuk al ijara: UK CGT relief for sale-and-leaseback structures under FA 2009 Sch 61—conditions, withdrawal, timing and anti-avoidance

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...

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PRACTICE NOTES
UK capital allowances for Sukuk al ijara (FA 2009 Sch 61): fixtures and SBAs, disregard of sale and leaseback land transfers, conditions and deemed disposals

Sukuk al ijara Sukuk (singular: ‘sakk’) are a Shari’a-compliant financing mechanism, known as Islamic certificates or bonds. For details, see Practice Note: Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment—What are sukuk? Where the qualifying criteria are satisfied, sukuk can access the UK tax regime that applies to alternative finance investment bond (AFIB) structures. For guidance on those provisions, see Practice Note: Sukuk—investment bond arrangements and their UK direct tax treatment. Sukuk al ijara represents a specific category of sukuk. In a sukuk al ijara, the bond asset owned by the bond-issuer (the statutory term for the sukuk issuer) on trust for the sukuk investors (the certificate holders) is frequently real property. The issuer secures an interest in that property through a sale and leaseback—the sale and leaseback being the ijara. For reading, 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 standard documentation in the context of real estate...

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