It is assumed that the Deputy is referring to the charitable tax exemption, which may apply to religious organisations.
The Deputy will be aware that my Department publish an annual report on tax expenditures. The most recent report, “Tax Expenditures in Ireland – 2025 Report”, was published in July and is available here: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-finance/publications/tax-expenditures-publications-and-guidelines/
Tax expenditures are defined in Irish legislation as a transfer of public resources that is achieved by—
• reducing tax obligations with respect to a benchmark tax rather than by direct expenditure, or
• provisions of tax legislation that reduce or postpone revenue for a comparatively narrow population of taxpayers relative to the tax base.
This definition is provided for by Statutory Instrument No. 508 of 2013 - European Union (Requirements for Budgetary Frameworks of Member States) Regulations 2013. My Department holds a master list of tax expenditures that is reviewed annually following the enactment of the Finance Bill. At present, there are 117 tax expenditures on the master list.
The charitable tax exemption is considered part of the benchmark tax system. Consequently, it does not appear on the master list of tax expenditures held by my Department and is not reported on in the annual report on tax expenditures.
