Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 December 2025
236. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the number of claims made in each of the past five years for preferential tariff treatment under the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) for buses imported from Great Britain; the number of claims approved; the number refused; and the main reasons for refusals, as recorded by Revenue. [68765/25]
View answer237. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the number of applications for Returned Goods Relief for buses re-imported into the State from the United Kingdom in each of the past five years; the number approved; the number refused; and the main reasons recorded for refusals. [68766/25]
View answer238. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if his Department has assessed whether the administrative requirements of the TCA preferential-origin rules or the Returned Goods Relief documentation may be limiting access for smaller bus operators; and if he will outline any guidance, outreach or simplification measures under consideration by Revenue. [68767/25]
View answer242. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if Revenue has undertaken any review of the administrative burden placed on small and medium-sized licensed bus operators when importing buses from Great Britain, including documentary requirements for origin, VAT self-accounting, and customs declarations; and if he will outline the findings of any such review. [68771/25]
View answer243. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the total customs duty and import VAT collected on buses imported into the State from Great Britain and other non-EU countries in each of the past five years; and if he will provide a breakdown by year and engine type where available. [68772/25]
View answer248. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if Revenue has issued guidance to licensed bus operators on the verification of UK origin under the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement for the importation of buses; and if he will provide copies of any such guidance issued since 2021. [68777/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 236, 237, 238, 242, 243 and 248 together.
The European Union's Customs Union is a core part of the single market, applying common rules at its external borders, and national customs administrations are responsible for their day-to-day implementation. All businesses in Ireland, including small and medium enterprises (SMEs), must complete customs declarations for imports and exports, as well as safety and security declarations, when trading with countries outside of the EU. Customs rules including those relating to returned goods relief and proofs for preferential origin are agreed and harmonised at EU level and the provisions are common throughout all Member States. The provisions apply to all businesses regardless of size and it is not possible for Ireland to change the requirements for any business size or for any particular product.
Revenue have detailed information on their website to assist businesses in meeting their customs requirements (www.revenue.ie/en/customs/businesses/importing-exporting/new-customs/index.aspx) including information on how businesses can ease the administrative burden. Revenue also provides email and phone line support if additional assistance is required. Government agencies such as the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) and Enterprise Ireland provide an extensive range of supports to local businesses, including support for businesses to meet their customs requirements.
The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) provides the basis for tariff free trade between the EU and the UK where the origin of the goods being imported or exported can be proven. This means a preferential 0% tariff rate will apply if goods entering the EU from the UK are proven to be of UK origin, and a request for this preferential treatment has been included on the relevant customs declaration. When the TCA was agreed in 2020, Revenue issued an e-customs notification to trade outlining the specific origin requirements of the agreement (www.revenue.ie/en/customs/businesses/electronic-systems/ais/ecustoms-notifications/2020/aep-notification-036-2020.pdf). Further information is available on the Revenue website at: www.revenue.ie/en/customs/businesses/origin/eu-uk-trade-agreement/index.aspx.
The rules of origin differ from product to product and Revenue does not provide information on individual products as it is necessary to check the rules for each individual product. The Preferential Origin Rules related to buses (Customs Classification Heading 8702) are described at page 1089 in the TCA - eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:22021A0430(01)&from=EN. If an importer has any queries in relation to preferential origin, they can contact Revenue on origin"asection@revenue.ie.
It is also worth noting that the Customs rules across the EU are currently being reviewed with forthcoming legislation reforming the way businesses can interact with customs administrations. Under the new Union Customs Code reform, businesses that want to bring goods into the EU will be able to submit all the information on their products and supply chains into a single online environment, in a single place in Europe, even if the goods are destined for clearance in many Member States. This aims to be a significant cut in the operators’ customs administrative burden, because they will only need to interact with one single portal and submit data once, for multiple consignments.
In relation to 68765/25 and 68766/25 and the number of claims made for Preferential Origin under the TCA and Returned Goods Relief (RGR) for buses imported from Great Britain, please see the table below.
|
Year |
Number of Preferential Origin Claims |
Number of RGR Claims |
|
2025 |
90 |
36 |
|
2024 |
96 |
51 |
|
2023 |
69 |
37 |
|
2022 |
150 |
40 |
|
2021 |
362 |
16 |
It should be noted that these are the number of applications for preferential origin and RGR on our import system. Statistics on applications that were rejected for validation reasons by the computer system when submitted, or where applications were rejected as a result of pre-clearance or post-clearance checks are not recorded in that detail on our system.
There is a reduction in the number of Preferential Origin Claims since 2021. Revenue note that there may be numerous reasons for this including changing supply chains as businesses look to the EU to purchase goods post-Brexit, changes in bus technology impacting on origin as well as a greater understanding by businesses of the TCA preferential origin requirements.
In relation to 68772/25 and the total customs duty and import VAT collected on buses imported into the State from Great Britain and other non-EU countries, please see the table below.
|
Classification 6 digit code |
Descriptions |
Year |
Customs €m |
Postponed Accounting for VAT €m |
VAT €m |
Total €m |
|
870210 |
With only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) |
2025 |
1.7 |
16.8 |
1.6 |
20.1 |
|
870210 |
With only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) |
2024 |
2.3 |
14.7 |
1.6 |
18.6 |
|
870210 |
With only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) |
2023 |
1.2 |
9.2 |
1.5 |
11.9 |
|
870210 |
With only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) |
2022 |
0.8 |
4 |
1.5 |
6.3 |
|
870210 |
With only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) |
2021 |
0.4 |
1.7 |
0.7 |
2.8 |
|
870220 |
With both compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2025 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
870220 |
With both compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2024 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
870220 |
With both compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2023 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
870220 |
With both compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2022 |
0 |
1.1 |
0 |
1.1 |
|
870220 |
With both compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel) and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2021 |
0 |
20.7 |
0 |
20.7 |
|
870230 |
With both spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2025 |
0 |
1.4 |
0 |
1.4 |
|
870230 |
With both spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2024 |
0 |
1.2 |
0 |
1.2 |
|
870230 |
With both spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2023 |
0.2 |
0.8 |
0 |
1 |
|
870230 |
With both spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2022 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
870230 |
With both spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine and electric motor as motors for propulsion |
2021 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
870240 |
With only electric motor for propulsion |
2025 |
0 |
0.4 |
0 |
0.4 |
|
870240 |
With only electric motor for propulsion |
2024 |
0.4 |
2.4 |
0.1 |
2.9 |
|
870240 |
With only electric motor for propulsion |
2023 |
0 |
0.9 |
0 |
0.9 |
|
870240 |
With only electric motor for propulsion |
2022 |
0.3 |
4.9 |
0 |
5.2 |
|
870240 |
With only electric motor for propulsion |
2021 |
0.1 |
0.2 |
0 |
0.3 |
