Written Answers Nos. 76-90
76. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Finance if he will make changes to capital gains tax in order that a loophole concerning properties owned by individuals in nursing home care, availing of the fair deal scheme, can be rectified (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41690/24]
View answerIn general, Capital Gains Tax (CGT) is chargeable on a gain arising on the disposal of an asset, including a residential property, at the rate of 33%. The first €1,270 of chargeable gains of an individual in any year are exempt from CGT.
Section 604, TCA 1997 provides relief from CGT on the disposal of one’s principal private residence (PPR), being a dwelling house together with land occupied as its gardens or grounds up to an area (exclusive of the site of the dwelling house) of one acre. If a property was occupied by an individual as their PPR for all or part of their period of ownership, then full or partial relief from CGT will be available where a chargeable gain arises on the disposal of that property. The last 12 months of ownership of such a property by the individual is treated as a period of occupation for the purpose of this relief. By way of example, if an individual both owned and occupied a residential property as their PPR for 10 years prior to disposal, no CGT will arise in respect of any chargeable gain which may accrue to that individual on foot of their disposal of same. However, if the individual only occupied the property as their PPR for 7 of the 10 years in which they owned the property, they will pay CGT in respect of 20% of the chargeable gain which may arise on foot of their disposal of same, as the portion of the gain which relates to the period in which the individual occupied, or is deemed to have occupied, the property as their PPR is fully relieved from CGT.
I am advised by Revenue in addition to the last 12 months of ownership of a PPR, as noted above, certain other periods of absence from the PPR in the course of an individual’s ownership of same may be deemed to be periods of occupation for the purposes of PPR relief. These include periods of absence during which both of the following circumstances apply:
• the individual seeking to rely on PPR relief (who would normally live alone) was receiving care in a hospital, nursing home or convalescent home, or was resident in a retirement home on a feepaying basis, and
• the PPR in question remained unoccupied during the period of absence.
In general, where a PPR is rented out to a third party and thus not occupied as an individual’s only or main residence, this period is not considered a period of occupation for the purposes of PPR relief.
It should be noted that the specific facts and circumstances at the time of disposal of the property in question will determine the application of any relief and the amount of CGT which may be due in respect of the disposal. Further information on PPR relief may be found on Revenue’s website at:
www.revenue.ie/en/gains-gifts-and-inheritance/cgt-reliefs/principal-private-residence-ppr-relief.aspx.
77. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the number of legal cases taken against his Department in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024; the costs incurred by his Department in relation to such cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41716/24]
View answerIt is not possible to provide this information requested in the time available because the Minister for Finance is named as a party on a large number of proceedings which seek damages from the State, without being directly involved in the running of the litigation in circumstances where another Minister may take the leading role in respect of providing instructions on the issue. We do not have records of all cases naming the Minister for Finance. In many cases, we are not consulted even though the Minister for Finance is a party, where another Minister is the lead defendant and provides instructions. There is an (erroneous) assumption in some legal circles that the Minister for Finance should be named as a defendant whenever damages (or costs) are being sought from the State.
The Chief State Solicitor's Office or the State Claims agency, as Government solicitor absorb the cost of representing the Department.
A list of particularly sensitive litigation relevant to the Minister for Finance is prepared on a regular basis by the Office of the Attorney General. As of July 2024, there are seven ongoing cases included in the list of sensitive litigation for which the Minister for Finance is the primary respondent/defendant.
78. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the number of data breaches experienced by his Department in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024; if a breakdown will be provided on the nature of the breaches; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41733/24]
View answerMy Department documents any personal data breaches that have occurred in the Department in accordance with its obligations under Article 33(5) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
According to records in my Department, there were no data breaches on the part of the Department between 2013 and 2018. The table below provides the number of data breaches by year since the introduction of the GDPR on 25 May 2018 to date.
|
Year: |
Number of Data Breaches: |
|
2018 |
1 |
|
2019 |
8 |
|
2020 |
10 |
|
2021 |
6 |
|
2022 |
5 |
|
2023 |
2 |
|
2024 |
3 |
The Deputy should note that my Department has a data breach management policy in place to ensure that any data breaches are dealt with as required under Articles 33-34 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). For operational security reasons, my Department is not in a position to provide any details of its cyber security systems, as it would be inappropriate to disclose information that may in any way assist those with malicious intent.
I am informed that the nature of data breaches which have been identified since 2018 in my Department fall into three broad categories: accidental exposure of personal data to unauthorised persons; the loss or theft of IT equipment; and personal data shared in error with unintended recipients. Of those breaches, only a small portion (six) warranted formal notification to the Data Protection Commissioner, and these were fully resolved. Immediate follow-up action was taken by my Department in respect of all of the breaches and I understand that in some cases that data subjects were informed out of courtesy despite there being no or low risk to them.
79. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the total costs associated for his Department in relation to trips abroad taken by Ministers in his Department in each of the past five years and to date in 2024. [41751/24]
View answerIt was not possible for my Department to provide the information sought in the time available. I will, however, make arrangements to provide the information to the Deputy as soon as possible.
80. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the amount spent by his Department on public relations in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024, in tabular form. [41767/24]
View answerI wish to inform the Deputy that in the 10 years to date my Department has had only one public relations contract, with Daniel J. Edelman Ireland Limited. The duration of the contract was from August 2019 to January 2020. This contract was for the provision of specialist advice on using social media in overseas markets to promote Ireland for Finance. The value of this contract was €29,274 (incl. VAT).
81. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the total amount of consultancy fees incurred by his Department in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024, in tabular form. [41788/24]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to the amount spent by my Department on advertising from 2014 to date in 2024 is set out in tabular form below. This information with a further break down is available at www.gov.ie/en/collection/ae6733-consultancy/.
|
Year |
Total Cost Inc. VAT |
|
2014 |
€1,757,595.00 |
|
2015 |
€2,663,142.00 |
|
2016 |
€990,951.00 |
|
2017 |
€2,619,469.00 |
|
2018 |
€1,969,036.00 |
|
2019 |
€1,287,478.65 |
|
2020 |
€699,212.45 |
|
2021 |
€274,037.75 |
|
2022 |
€392,059.22 |
|
2023 |
€710,616.93 |
|
2024 |
€604,505.70 |
82. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the amount spent by his Department on traditional and online advertising in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024, in tabular form. [41806/24]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to the amount spent by my Department on advertising from 2014 to date in 2024 is set out in tabular form below which includes both traditional and online advertising.
The Department is not in a position to demarcate online spend from other forms of expenditure, as some advertising will inevitably involve both.
|
Year |
Description |
Amount |
|
2014 |
Recruitment for the position of Head of International & EU Division in the Sunday Business Post and Sunday Times online |
€2,787.41 |
|
Notice re: winding up of SAT/ICAROM (Insurance Corporation of Ireland) in Irish Daily Mail |
€130.18 |
|
|
Creative strategy, production and burst 1 of campaign to increase awareness of the Supporting SME online tool on social media |
€27,683.70 |
|
|
2015 |
Advertisement for the position of Governor of the Central Bank |
€12,300.00 |
|
Local Property Tax Review advertisements in Irish Times, Irish Independent and Irish Examiner |
€7,181.56 |
|
|
Campaign to increase awareness of the Supporting SME online tool on social media |
€50,519.18 |
|
|
2016 |
Mortgage Arrears Communication Campaign |
€73,136 |
|
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€24,682 |
|
|
Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue |
€17,657 |
|
|
2017 |
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€717,746 |
|
Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue |
€17,657 |
|
|
Information notice re: Beneficial Ownership |
€2,408 |
|
|
Graphic Design: Public Awareness Campaign |
€480 |
|
|
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€73.80 |
|
|
Advertising: European Financial Forum |
€24.60 |
|
|
2018 |
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€405,900 |
|
Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue |
€13,616 |
|
|
Advertising: Board Recruitment |
€1,707 |
|
|
Irish Language Notice (The Department's Irish Language Scheme) |
€1,240 |
|
|
Irish Language Notice (The Department's Irish Language Scheme) |
€983 |
|
|
2019 |
Advertising: Vacancy for Governor of Central Bank of Ireland |
€12,300 |
|
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€2,066.40 |
|
|
2020 |
Irish Language Notice (The Department's Irish Language Scheme) |
€815.07 |
|
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€2,066.40 |
|
|
2021 |
Advertising: Switch Your Bank* |
€3,018.95 |
|
Advertising: Vacancy for Appeals Commissioner in the Tax Appeals Commission |
€1,353.00 |
|
|
**Commission on Taxation |
€28,858.93 |
|
|
***FSD |
NIL |
|
|
2022 |
Advertisement placed in the Irish Times for the position of Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman |
€3,049.54 |
|
****Banking/FSPO |
NIL |
|
|
*****Fiscal |
NIL |
|
|
**Commission on Taxation |
€23,102.09 |
|
|
2024 |
Advertising services provided by IDA Ireland in relation to Ireland’s bid to host the EU Anti-Money Laundering Authority |
€176,638.61 |
*The cost of the Switch your Bank campaign is fully recoupable by AIB and Permanent TSB in the context of their restructuring plans. These costs relate to a Public awareness campaign as part of a range of competition measures agreed with the European Commission to raise awareness and promote customer switching of financial products. The Department of Finance facilitates this campaign as part of its remit to ensure that consumers are protected within the financial sector in Ireland and to ensure a healthy level of competition.
**Commission on Taxation: This relates to online advertising spend and it may include some traditional forms of advertising. It is not possible to provide an exact breakdown as to what advertising campaigns this spend relates to. However, a total of €4,442 was spent across LinkedIn and Twitter as part of the Public Consultation and Extension campaign.
***There was no direct spending on online advertising for the Financial Services Division. However, €4,879 was spent in 2021 on a consultancy contract with Daniel J Edelman. The consultancy was for specialist advice and support on the use of social media in international contexts for the international launches of the Government of Ireland’s Ireland for Finance strategy.
****Banking division had no direct spending on social media in either 2022 or 2021. However, Banking Division contributed €150,000 to help fund the CCPC bank switching campaign “Breaking Up with Your Bank” in August 2022. The CCPC managed how the advertising funds are spent across platforms in 2022.
*****In addition, the Department also contributed €35,000 to the Department of Housing, Heritage and Local Government for a joint print and social media campaign regarding the Residential Zoned Land Tax.
83. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the amount collected in VAT on energy bills in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024, in tabular form. [41852/24]
View answerI am informed by Revenue that traders are not required to separately identify the VAT from specific goods and services on their periodic VAT returns. Therefore, it is not possible to provide the VAT yield on all energy related products and services using taxpayer information alone. However, using Revenue data and third party sources, a tentative estimate of VAT received on energy bills is as follows:
|
Year |
Total VAT |
|
2014 |
€493 |
|
2015 |
€531 |
|
2016 |
€514 |
|
2017 |
€514 |
|
2018 |
€573 |
|
2019 |
€526 |
|
2020 |
€573 |
|
2021 |
€689 |
|
2022 |
€688 |
|
2023 |
€826 |
|
2024 YTD (August) |
€397 |
84. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance the amount collected in tax on fuel, by fuel type, in each of the past ten years and to date in 2024, in tabular form. [41853/24]
View answerI am advised by Revenue that the receipts collected in respect of Fuel Taxes in each of the past ten years up to 2023 are published on the Revenue website at:
www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/information-about-revenue/statistics/excise/receipts-volume-and-price/excise-receipts-commodity.aspx.
The provisional receipts for the year to September 2024 are shown in the following table:
January – September 2024
|
Fuel Type |
Non-Carbon Component €m |
Carbon Component €m |
|
Diesel |
1,020.8 |
358.4 |
|
MGO |
20.0 |
101.0 |
|
Petrol |
394.5 |
93.6 |
|
Natural Gas |
- |
100.7 |
|
KERO |
- |
87.4 |
|
Other LPG |
- |
21.6 |
|
Solid Fuel |
- |
17.1 |
|
Fuel Oil |
0.1 |
1.4 |
|
Auto LPG |
0.1 |
0.1 |
|
Aviation Gasoline |
0.2 |
0.1 |
In relation to VAT, I am further advised by Revenue that traders are not required to separately identify the VAT yield generated from the supply of specific goods and services on their periodic VAT returns. Therefore, it is not possible to provide the VAT yield on all fuel and energy related products and services using taxpayer information alone. However, using Revenue and third-party data sources, a tentative estimate of the VAT generated over each of the past 10 years and to the end of August 2024 by fuel type is provided in the table below.
Estimated VAT €m
|
Product |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Petrol |
423 |
364 |
319 |
318 |
294 |
276 |
195 |
231 |
322 |
318 |
241 |
|
Diesel |
254 |
287 |
262 |
284 |
306 |
294 |
257 |
334 |
423 |
370 |
259 |
|
Gas |
58 |
65 |
62 |
59 |
70 |
69 |
70 |
69 |
111 |
158 |
67 |
|
Kerosene |
42 |
43 |
50 |
61 |
63 |
43 |
67 |
108 |
90 |
75 |
45 |
|
MGO |
41 |
33 |
30 |
34 |
40 |
39 |
32 |
42 |
71 |
56 |
40 |
|
Solid Fuels |
41 |
53 |
45 |
40 |
44 |
30 |
31 |
47 |
57 |
77 |
56 |
|
LPG |
8 |
7 |
8 |
10 |
14 |
14 |
12 |
14 |
16 |
16 |
6 |
|
Total |
867 |
852 |
776 |
806 |
831 |
765 |
664 |
845 |
1,090 |
1,070 |
714 |
85. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Finance to consider revising the VAT regulations for small bus operators, particularly those involved in school transport, to allow them to reclaim VAT on the purchase of new buses, noting that the current VAT rate of 23% with no reclaim option places a significant financial burden on these operators, especially given the lack of a second-hand market and the impact of Brexit on import options; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41878/24]
View answerThe VAT treatment of goods and services is subject to EU VAT law, with which Irish VAT law must comply. In general, the VAT Directive provides that all goods and services are liable to VAT at the standard rate, currently 23% in Ireland, unless they fall within categories of goods and services specified in Annex III of the Directive, in respect of which a Member State may decide apply a lower rate, subject to strict rules including limits on the numbers of categories to which lower rates may be applied.
Under Annex III of the VAT Directive, it is possible to apply a reduced rate or a zero rate of VAT to passenger transport including their accompanying goods such as baggage. However, Ireland’s scope to follow such an approach for this sector is restricted owing to the limits imposed by the Directive on the number of categories.
Nevertheless, the Directive also allows for historic VAT treatment to be maintained by a Member State under certain conditions and, on this basis, Ireland has retained its application of VAT exemption to the transport of passengers and their accompanying baggage. This means that under Ireland’s VAT rules, suppliers of passenger transport services, including school transport, do not register for VAT, do not charge VAT on the supply of their services and, consequently, have no VAT recovery entitlement on their input costs.
In accordance with the EU rules, Ireland may continue to apply this historic VAT exemption on the supply of domestic passenger transport but, for as long as the exemption remains, the conditions under which the exemption was granted cannot be changed. The introduction of a new entitlement to VAT recovery for the passenger transport sector could only be done if Ireland were to decide to end its historic exemption for the sector and bring passenger transport services into the VAT net; this would then require suppliers to register for VAT and require them to charge VAT on their passenger fares, including school transport.
Ireland has also maintained a relieving provision, the Value Added Tax (Refund of Tax) (Touring Coaches) Order of 2012, which provides for a refund of VAT on the cost of acquiring certain tour coaches by qualifying businesses. One of the key conditions of the Order, is that qualifying business is engaged in the business of carriage for reward of tourists by road under contract for group transport and that the vehicle is in that business. The Order does not extend to school transport.
The Deputy is asking about the possibility of extending the scope of the Order to small school transport operators, thereby allowing them to reclaim VAT on the purchase of new buses. Such a measure would not be compatible with the EU VAT Directive, particularly having regard to the conditions under which Ireland is permitted to maintain its historic VAT exemption for passenger transport.
86. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Finance to respond to two items of correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41972/24]
View answerI note the issues raised in the correspondence shared by the Deputy, relating to tax treatment of Exchange Traded Funds, or ETFs, and individual savings accounts.
Regarding both the tax treatment of ETFs and individual savings accounts, it will be of interest to the Deputy that my Department published the Terms of Reference for a review of Ireland’s funds sector - ‘Funds Sector 2030: A Framework for Open, Resilient & Developing Markets’ last year.
A draft report has been submitted to me for consideration and this is in line with the Review’s Terms of Reference. The review was wide ranging and examined a range of issues relevant to the funds sector.
I plan to publish the report of the review shortly.
87. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Finance to respond to correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41984/24]
View answerThe general regulation of charities, including monitoring the activities of individual charities, is a matter for the Charities Regulator, an independent body set up under the Charities Act 2009, which was introduced to make provisions for the registration, regulation and protection of charitable organisations and trusts.
All applications to register as a charity must be submitted to the Charities Regulator. Once a charity has been registered with the Charities Regulator it can apply to Revenue’s Charities and Sports Exemptions Unit for the charitable tax exemption and for authorisation under the Charitable Donations Scheme (CDS).
The CDS is provided for in section 848A and Schedule 26A Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA). Charitable tax exemption is provided for in section 207 and 208 TCA for Irish-based bodies and section 208A for Irish source income of overseas bodies. A body qualifies for the exemption if it applies its income to charitable purposes. There are also separate exemptions for charities under other taxes.
There is no definition of “charity” or “charitable purposes” in tax legislation. The Charities Act 2009 broadly adopted the definition of charitable purposes outlined in case law, which are: the prevention or relief of poverty or economic hardship; the advancement of education; the advancement of religion; or any other purpose that is of benefit to the community. Several other charitable purposes have been added under the Charities (Amendment) Act 2024.
It is a matter for a body itself to apply to the Charities Regulator to be registered as a charity, and to apply to Revenue for the charitable tax exemption and for authorisation under the CDS.
88. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the estimated cost of increasing the standard fund threshold to €2.2 million from its current level of €2 million; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41985/24]
View answer89. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the estimated number of people that will benefit from his plan to increase the standard fund threshold from €2 million to €2.2 million; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41986/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 88 and 89 together.
The Standard Fund Threshold (SFT) is the maximum allowable pension fund on retirement for tax purposes which was introduced in Budget and Finance Act 2006 to prevent over-funding of pensions through tax-relieved arrangements.
I am informed by Revenue that they are unable provide a costing for changes to the SFT. Information on the numbers and values of individual pension funds or on individual accrued benefits in pension schemes are not generally required to be supplied to Revenue. Therefore, currently there is no readily available underlying data or methodology on which to base reliable estimates of any possible yields that might be realised arising from reductions to the SFT as outlined by the Deputy.
As the Deputy will be aware, the examination of the Standard Fund Threshold has recently concluded and in the context of this examination my officials examined the issue of estimating the impact of changes to the SFT using only the available information about previous payments of Chargeable Excess Tax (CET). Following this examination, the Department prepared some indicative estimated costs, based on the information available. I would note that these estimated costs do not take account of behavioural changes and are based on a reduction of the current CET yield. Using this model, the indicative costing of increasing the standard fund threshold €2.2million would be approximately €10.5million.
It is important to note that the indicative costs above relate only to CET. All pensions are subject to tax on drawdown (with the exemption of a tax free lump sum). The examination of the SFT noted that this tax paid on drawdown should be included in any overall consideration of the cost of pensions tax relief, which could be better characterised as tax deferred. The issue of calculating the cost of pension tax expenditure will be considered by the implementation group to be established to consider further a number of the recommendations in the report.
In regards to the number people of people that will benefit from these increases, it is not possible to provide an estimate of this. The nature of the SFT means that there are many variables that affect the value of retirement benefits when it is being compared to the SFT, and the valuation will depend on the individual’s circumstances. In addition, individuals can choose to retire at a range of ages, and for a variety of reasons. Therefore, it is not possible to forecast how many how many taxpayers are going to retire in 2026 with an SFT between €2 million and €2.2 million, and not possible to provide a figure on the number of taxpayers who might benefit from the change. I would note that the information that is available indicates that there were 224 payments of CET to Revenue through RevPay in 2023. However, this does not include taxpayers whose CET liability was covered by offsets of lump sum taxation.
90. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Finance to respond to correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42062/24]
View answerI am advised by Revenue that the earliest at which an individual can take retirement benefits is usually age 60 years. However, the terms of a retirement benefit scheme or pension product may provide that an individual can retire and take benefits from age 50 years. This is provided for in section 772(3)(a) and (4)(b)(ii) Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA) for occupational pension schemes, section 784(2)(iii)(II) and (3)(c) TCA for Retirement Annuity Contracts (RACs) and section 787K(1)(c)(ii) and (2)(b) and (c) TCA for Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs).
The scheme or product may provide for the payment of a lump sum of 25% of overall funds (section 772(3B)(b) for members of occupational pension schemes who can avail of the Approved Retirement Fund (ARF) option, section 784(2)(b) for RAC holders and section 787G(3)(a) for PRSA holders). Members of occupational pension schemes who do not have or do not avail of the ARF option can take a lump sum of up to 1.5 times final salary, depending on the individual’s service (section 772(3)(f) TCA).
The Deputy may be aware that the Report of the Interdepartmental Pensions Reform and Taxation Group (IDPRTG) was published in late 2020. The report set out a number of proposals to aid in the harmonisation and simplification of supplemental pensions. including:
“The lower age limit at which savers can access retirement benefits should be increased to 55. Consideration should be given to providing for a lead-in period to allow those retiring early in the shorter term to do so”.
While a number of the other proposals relating to taxation have been implemented since the publication of the Report, further proposals from the 2020 Report are currently being worked on as part of the 2025 work plan, some of which are technical in nature and others which have wider policy implications necessitating careful consideration through the normal policy channels. The Group continues its work to bring about further reforms of the supplemental pension landscape.
