First time under Corporate Tax — how are my existing assets valued at the start?

Companies that already existed and were operating before Corporate Tax applied to them carry fixed assets, real estate, and investments valued under accounting records that predate the tax regime entirely. The transitional rules set out how to treat that old book value — whether it simply carries forward, or whether an election is available to step up certain assets (like real estate) to market value at the point of entering the regime, subject to specific conditions.

This matters because it affects any capital gain or loss calculated later if the asset is sold. Getting the election wrong, or missing the allowed election window, can cost the company tax on a purely book gain rather than a real one. RASEEKH reviews legacy assets in the very first file, before the first tax return is filed.