In Halsey (HM Inspector of Taxes) v Marks & Spencer plc, the Court of Appeal, dismissing an appeal from HM Revenue & Customs, has held that, in relation to a claim for tax relief for losses suffered by a member of a group of companies resident in another EU member state, the relevant time for determining whether a company has exhausted all possibilities of using the loss where it was suffered is the time at which the claim is made. The Court of Appeal upheld M&S's cross-appeal that possibilities had to be "real" possibilities but rejected its application for a further reference to the European Court of Justice on the question of whether the restriction in the tax rules that denied relief for losses suffered by non-resident subsidiaries not trading in the UK should be disapplied in its entirety.