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3 2000

FINANCE ACT, 2000

Chapter 7

Income Tax and Corporation Tax: Reliefs for Renewal and Improvement of Certain Towns

Amendment of Part 10 (income tax and corporation tax: reliefs for renewal and improvement of certain urban areas, certain resort areas and certain islands) of Principal Act.

89. —The Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) in Part 10 by the insertion after Chapter 9 (inserted by the Finance Act, 1999 ) of the following:

“Chapter 10

Designated areas of certain towns

Interpretation and application (Chapter 10).

372AA.—(1) In this Chapter—

‘lease’, ‘lessee’, ‘lessor’, ‘premium’ and ‘rent’ have the same meanings respectively as in Chapter 8 of Part 4;

‘market value’, in relation to a building, structure or house, means the price which the unencumbered fee simple of the building, structure or house would fetch if sold in the open market in such manner and subject to such conditions as might reasonably be calculated to obtain for the vendor the best price for the building, structure or house, less the part of that price which would be attributable to the acquisition of, or of rights in or over, the land on which the building, structure or house is constructed;

‘property developer’ means a person carrying on a trade which consists wholly or mainly of the construction or refurbishment of buildings or structures with a view to their sale;

‘qualifying area’ means an area or areas specified as a qualifying area under section 372AB;

‘qualifying period’ means, subject to section 372AB, the period commencing on—

(a) in the case of section 372AC and section 372AD, such day as the Minister for Finance may by order appoint, and

(b) in the case of sections 372AE, 372AF, 372AG, 372AH and 372AI, 1 April 2000,

and ending on 31 March 2003;

‘refurbishment’, in relation to a building or structure and other than for the purposes of sections 372AG and 372AH, means any work of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, including the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities, carried out in the course of the repair or restoration, or maintenance in the nature of repair or restoration, of the building or structure.

(2) This Chapter shall apply if the Oireachtas passes an Act which refers to this Chapter and provides for the renewal of certain urban areas and the submission of plans (to be known as ‘Town Renewal Plans’) to the Minister for the Environment and Local Government which have been drawn up by county councils (being county councils as referred to in such Act) in respect of an area or areas identified by such an authority on the basis of criteria prepared by that Minister, including physical and socio-economic renewal of such an area or areas.

Qualifying areas.

372AB.—(1) The Minister for Finance may, on the recommendation of the Minister for the Environment and Local Government (which recommendation shall take into consideration a Town Renewal Plan submitted by a local authority to that Minister in respect of an area identified by it), by order direct that—

(a) the area or areas described (being wholly located within the boundaries of the area to which the Town Renewal Plan relates) in the order shall be a qualifying area for the purposes of one or more sections of this Chapter,

(b) where such an area or areas is or are to be a qualifying area for the purposes of section 372AD, one or both of the categories of building or structure mentioned in subsection (2) shall or shall not be a qualifying premises within the meaning of that section and where such an area or areas is or are to be a qualifying area for the purposes of section 372AH, that area or those areas may be a qualifying area for the purposes of the construction of, or, as the case may be, the refurbishment of a qualifying premises within the meaning of that section, and

(c) as respects any such area so described in the order, the definition of ‘qualifying period’ in section 372AA shall be construed as a reference to such period as shall be specified in the order in relation to that area; but no such period specified in the order shall commence before—

(i) in the case of sections 372AC and 372AD, the day referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of ‘qualifying period’ in section 372AA, and

(ii) in the case of sections 372AE, 372AF, 372AG, 372AH and 372AI, 1 April 2000,

or end after 31 March 2003.

(2) The categories of building or structure referred to in subsection (1) (b) shall be—

(a) buildings or structures in use as offices, and

(b) any other buildings or structures and in respect of which not more than 10 per cent of the capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on their construction or refurbishment relates to the construction or refurbishment of buildings or structures to which paragraph (a) relates.

(3) Every order made by the Minister for Finance under subsection (1) shall be laid before Dáil Éireann as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the order is passed by Dáil Éirean within the next 21 days on which Dáil Éireann has sat after the order is laid before it, the order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

(4) Notwithstanding an order under subsection (1), the granting of relief by virtue of any provision of this Chapter shall be subject to such other requirements as may be specified in or under the Act referred to in section 372AA(2).

Accelerated capital allowances in relation to construction or refurbishment of certain industrial buildings or structures.

372AC.—(1) In this section, ‘building or structure to which this section applies’ means a building or structure or part of a building or structure the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area and which is to be an industrial building or structure by reason of its use for a purpose specified in section 268(1)(a).

(2) Subject to section 372AJ, section 271 shall apply in relation to capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure to which this section applies as if—

(a) in subsection (1) of that section the definition of ‘industrial development agency’ were deleted,

(b) in subsection (2)(a)(i) of that section ‘to which subsection (3) applies’ were deleted,

(c) subsection (3) of that section were deleted,

(d) the following subsection were substituted for subsection (4) of that section:

‘(4) An industrial building allowance shall be of an amount equal to 50 per cent of the capital expenditure mentioned in subsection (2).’,

and

(e) in subsection (5) of that section ‘to which subsection (3)(c) applies’ were deleted.

(3) Subject to section 372AJ, section 273 shall apply in relation to capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure to which this section applies as if—

(a) in subsection (1) of that section the definition of ‘industrial development agency’ were deleted,

(b) the following paragraph were substituted for paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of that section:

‘(b) As respects any qualifying expenditure, any allowance made under section 272 and increased under paragraph (a) in respect of that expenditure, whether claimed for one chargeable period or more than one such period, shall not in the aggregate exceed 50 per cent of the amount of that qualifying expenditure.’,

and

(c) subsections (3) to (7) of that section were deleted.

(4) Notwithstanding section 274(1), no balancing charge shall be made in relation to a building or structure to which this section applies by reason of any of the events specified in that section which occurs—

(a) more than 13 years after the building or structure was first used, or

(b) in a case where section 276 applies, more than 13 years after the capital expenditure on refurbishment of the building or structure was incurred.

(5) For the purposes only of determining, in relation to a claim for an allowance under section 271 or 273 as applied by this section, whether and to what extent capital expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of an industrial building or structure is incurred or not incurred in the qualifying period, only such an amount of that capital expenditure as is properly attributable to work on the construction or, as the case may be, the refurbishment of the building or structure actually carried out during the qualifying period shall (notwithstanding any other provision of the Tax Acts as to the time when any capital expenditure is or is to be treated as incurred) be treated as having been incurred in that period.

Capital allowances in relation to construction or refurbishment of certain commercial premises.

372AD.—(1) In this section, ‘qualifying premises’ means a building or structure or part of a building or structure the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area and which—

(a) apart from this section is not an industrial building or structure within the meaning of section 268, and

(b) (i) is in use for the purposes of a trade or profession, or

(ii) whether or not it is so used, is let on bona fide commercial terms for such consideration as might be expected to be paid in a letting of the building or structure negotiated on an arm's length basis,

but does not include any part of a building or structure in use as or as part of a dwelling house.

(2) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), subsections (3) and (4) and section 372AJ, the provisions of the Tax Acts (other than section 372AC) relating to the making of allowances or charges in respect of capital expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of an industrial building or structure shall, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in those provisions, apply—

(i) as if a qualifying premises were, at all times at which it is a qualifying premises, a building or structure in respect of which an allowance is to be made for the purposes of income tax or corporation tax, as the case may be, under Chapter 1 of Part 9 by reason of its use for a purpose specified in section 268(1)(a), and

(ii) where any activity carried on in the qualifying premises is not a trade, as if it were a trade.

(b) An allowance shall be given by virtue of this subsection in respect of any capital expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a qualifying premises only in so far as that expenditure is incurred in the qualifying period.

(3) For the purposes of the application, by subsection (2), of sections 271 and 273 in relation to capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of a qualifying premises—

(a) section 271 shall apply as if—

(i) in subsection (1) of that section the definition of ‘industrial development agency’ were deleted,

(ii) in subsection (2)(a)(i) of that section ‘to which subsection (3) applies’ were deleted,

(iii) subsection (3) of that section were deleted,

(iv) the following subsection were substituted for subsection (4) of that section:

‘(4) An industrial building allowance shall be of an amount equal to 50 per cent of the capital expenditure mentioned in subsection (2).’,

and

(v) in subsection (5) of that section ‘to which subsection (3)(c) applies’ were deleted,

and

(b) section 273 shall apply as if—

(i) in subsection (1) of that section the definition of ‘industrial development agency’ were deleted,

(ii) the following paragraph were substituted for paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of that section:

‘(b) As respects any qualifying expenditure, any allowance made under section 272 and increased under paragraph (a) in respect of that expenditure, whether claimed for one chargeable period or more than one such period, shall not in the aggregate exceed 50 per cent of the amount of that qualifying expenditure.’,

and

(iii) subsections (3) to (7) of that section were deleted.

(4) Notwithstanding section 274(1), no balancing charge shall be made in relation to a qualifying premises by reason of any of the events specified in that section which occur—

(a) more than 13 years after the qualifying premises was first used, or

(b) in a case where section 276 applies, more than 13 years after the capital expenditure on refurbishment of the qualifying premises was incurred.

(5) For the purposes only of determining, in relation to a claim for an allowance by virtue of subsection (2), whether and to what extent capital expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a qualifying premises is incurred or not incurred in the qualifying period, only such an amount of that capital expenditure as is properly attributable to work on the construction or refurbishment of the premises actually carried out during the qualifying period shall (notwithstanding any other provision of the Tax Acts as to the time when any capital expenditure is or is to be treated as incurred) be treated as having been incurred in that period.

Rented residential accommodation: deduction for certain expenditure on construction.

372AE.—(1) In this section—

‘qualifying lease’, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 372AI(2), a lease of the house the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are or are to be treated as rent for the purposes of Chapter 8 of Part 4, or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a), together with a payment by means of a premium which does not exceed 10 per cent of the relevant cost of the house;

‘qualifying premises’ means, subject to subsections (3), (4)(a), (4)(c) and (5) of section 372AI, a house—

(a) the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area,

(b) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(c) the total floor area of which is not less than 38 square metres and not more than 125 square metres,

(d) in respect of which there is in force either a certificate of compliance or, if it is not a house provided for sale, a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of construction of the house is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such construction, and

(e) which without having been used is first let in its entirely under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (except for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

‘relevant cost’, in relation to a house, means, subject to subsection (4), an amount equal to the aggregate of—

(a) the expenditure incurred on the acquisition of, or of rights in or over, any land on which the house is constructed, and

(b) the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the house;

‘relevant period’, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning on the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred expenditure on the construction of a qualifying premises—

(a) such person shall be entitled, in computing for the purposes of section 97(1) the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the qualifying premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of that expenditure as is to be treated under section 372AI(7) or under this section as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period, and

(b) Chapter 8 of Part 4 shall apply as if that deduction were a deduction authorised by section 97(2).

(3) (a) This subsection shall apply to any premium or other sum which is payable, directly or indirectly, under a qualifying lease or otherwise under the terms subject to which the lease is granted, to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor.

(b) Where any premium or other sum to which this subsection applies, or any part of such premium or such other sum, is not or is not treated as rent for the purposes of section 97, the expenditure to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period on the construction of the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed for the purposes of subsection (2) to be reduced by the lesser of—

(i) the amount of such premium or such other sum or, as the case may be, that part of such premium or such other sum, and

(ii) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in subparagraph (i) the same proportion as the amount of the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the expenditure incurred on that construction.

(4) Where a qualifying premises forms a part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms a part of a building which is itself one of a number of buildings in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary—

(a) of the expenditure incurred on the construction of that building or those buildings, and

(b) of the amount which would be the relevant cost in relation to that building or those buildings if the building or buildings, as the case may be, were a single qualifying premises,

for the purposes of determining the expenditure incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises and the relevant cost in relation to the qualifying premises.

(5) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs—

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then, the person who before the occurrence of the event received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (2) in respect of expenditure incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence of the event an amount as rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(6) (a) Where the event mentioned in subsection (5)(b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of expenditure on the construction of the house equal to the amount which under section 372AI(7) or under this section (apart from subsection (3)(b)) the lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period on the construction of the house; but, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed the relevant price paid by such person on the purchase.

(b) For the purposes of this subsection and subsection (7), the relevant price paid by a person on the purchase of a house shall be the amount which bears to the net price paid by such person on that purchase the same proportion as the amount of the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the house which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the relevant cost in relation to that house.

(7) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), where expenditure is incurred on the construction of a house and before the house is used it is sold, the person who purchases the house shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period expenditure on the construction of the house equal to the lesser of—

(i) the amount of such expenditure which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, and

(ii) the relevant price paid by such person on the purchase;

but, where the house is sold more than once before it is used, this subsection shall apply only in relation to the last of those sales.

(b) Where expenditure is incurred on the construction of a house by a person carrying on a trade or part of a trade which consists, as to the whole or any part of the trade, of the construction of buildings with a view to their sale and the house, before it is used, is sold in the course of that trade or, as the case may be, that part of that trade—

(i) the person (in this paragraph referred to as ‘the purchaser’) who purchases the house shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period expenditure on the construction of the house equal to the relevant price paid by the purchaser on the purchase (in this paragraph referred to as ‘the first purchase’), and

(ii) in relation to any subsequent sale or sales of the house before the house is used, paragraph (a) shall apply as if the reference to the amount of expenditure which is to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period were a reference to the relevant price paid on the first purchase.

(8) Section 372AI shall apply for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Rented residential accommodation: deduction for certain expenditure on conversion.

372AF.—(1) In this section—

‘conversion expenditure’ means, subject to subsection (2), expenditure incurred on—

(a) the conversion into a house of a building or part of a building—

(i) the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area, and

(ii) which has not been previously in use as a dwelling,

and

(b) the conversion into 2 or more houses of a building or part of a building—

(i) the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area, and

(ii) which before the conversion had not been in use as a dwelling or had been in use as a single dwelling,

and references in this section and in section 372AI to ‘conversion’, ‘conversion into a house’ and ‘expenditure incurred on conversion’ shall be construed accordingly;

‘qualifying lease’, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 372AI(2), a lease of the house the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are or are to be treated as rent for the purposes of Chapter 8 of Part 4, or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a), together with a payment by means of a premium which does not exceed 10 per cent of the market value of the house at the time the conversion is completed and, in the case of a house which is a part of a building and is not saleable apart from the building of which it is a part, the market value of the house at the time the conversion is completed shall for the purposes of this paragraph be taken to be an amount which bears to the market value of the building at that time the same proportion as the total floor area of the house bears to the total floor area of the building;

‘qualifying premises’ means, subject to subsections (3), (4)(b), (4)(c) and (5) of section 372AI, a house—

(a) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(b) the total floor area of which is not less than 38 square metres and not more than 125 square metres,

(c) in respect of which there is in force either a certificate of compliance or, if it is not a converted house provided for sale, a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of conversion in relation to the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such conversion, and

(d) which without having been used subsequent to the incurring of the expenditure on the conversion is first let in its entirety under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (except for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

‘relevant period’, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning on the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(2) For the purposes of this section, expenditure incurred on the conversion of a building shall be deemed to include expenditure incurred in the course of the conversion on either or both of the following—

(a) the carrying out of any works of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, and

(b) the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities,

in relation to the building or any outoffice appurtenant to or usually enjoyed with the building, but shall not be deemed to include—

(i) any expenditure in respect of which any person is entitled to a deduction, relief or allowance under any other provision of the Tax Acts, or

(ii) any expenditure attributable to any part (in this section referred to as a ‘non-residential unit’) of the building which on completion of the conversion is not a house.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2)(ii), where expenditure is attributable to a building in general and not directly to any particular house or non-residential unit comprised in the building on completion of the conversion, such an amount of that expenditure shall be deemed to be attributable to a non-residential unit as bears to the whole of that expenditure the same proportion as the total floor area of the non-residential unit bears to the total floor area of the building.

(4) Subject to subsection (5), where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred conversion expenditure in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises—

(a) such person shall be entitled, in computing for the purposes of section 97(1) the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the qualifying premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of the expenditure as is to be treated under section 372AI(7) or under this section as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period, and

(b) Chapter 8 of Part 4 shall apply as if that deduction were a deduction authorised by section 97(2).

(5) (a) This subsection shall apply to any premium or other sum which is payable, directly or indirectly, under a qualifying lease or otherwise under the terms subject to which the lease is granted, to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor.

(b) Where any premium or other sum to which this subsection applies, or any part of such premium or such other sum, is not or is not treated as rent for the purposes of section 97, the conversion expenditure to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed for the purposes of subsection (4) to be reduced by the lesser of—

(i) the amount of such premium or such other sum or, as the case may be, that part of such premium or such other sum, and

(ii) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in subparagraph (i) the same proportion as the amount of the conversion expenditure actually incurred in relation to the qualifying premises which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(6) Where a qualifying premises forms a part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms a part of a building which is itself one of a number of building in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary of the expenditure incurred on the conversion of that building or those buildings for the purposes of determining the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(7) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs—

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then, the person who before the occurrence of the event received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (4) in respect of conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence of the event an amount as rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(8) Where the event mentioned in subsection (7)(b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of conversion expenditure in relation to the house equal to the amount of the conversion expenditure which under section 372AI(7) or under this section (apart from subsection (5)(b)) the lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the house; but, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed—

(a) the net price paid by such person on the purchase, or

(b) in case only a part of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to that net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house.

(9) Where conversion expenditure is incurred in relation to a house and before the house is used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure it is sold, the person who purchases the house shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period conversion expenditure in relation to the house equal to the lesser of—

(a) the amount of such expenditure which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, and

(b) (i) the net price paid by such person on the purchase, or

(ii) in case only a part of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to that net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house;

but, where the house is sold more than once before it is used subsequent to the incurring of the conversion expenditure in relation to the house, this subsection shall apply only in relation to the last of those sales.

(10) This section shall not apply in the case of a conversion unless planning permission in respect of the conversion has been granted under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts, 1963 to 1999.

(11) Section 372AI shall apply for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Rented residential accommodation: deduction for certain expenditure on refurbishment.

372AG.—(1) In this section—

‘facade’, in relation to a house, means the exterior wall of the house which fronts on to a street;

‘qualifying lease’, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 372AI(2), a lease of the house the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are or are to be treated as rent for the purposes of Chapter 8 of Part 4, or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a), together with a payment by means of a premium—

(i) which is payable on or subsequent to the date of the completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates or which, if payable before that date, is so payable by reason of or otherwise in connection with the carrying out of the refurbishment, and

(ii) which does not exceed 10 per cent of the market value of the house on the date of completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates and, in the case of a house which is a part of a building and is not saleable apart from the building of which it is a part, the market value of the house on that date shall for the purposes of this subparagraph be taken to be an amount which bears to the market value of the building on that date the same proportion as the total floor area of the house bears to the total floor area of the building;

‘qualifying premises’ means, subject to subsections (3), (4)(b), (4)(c) and (5) of section 372AI, a house—

(a) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(b) the total floor area of which is not less than 38 square metres and not more than 125 square metres,

(c) in respect of which there is in force either a certificate of compliance or, if it is not a refurbished house provided for sale, a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of refurbishment in relation to the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the relevant expenditure actually incurred on such refurbishment but where the relevant expenditure relates solely to a facade this paragraph shall not apply, and

(d) which on the date of completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates is let (or, if not let on that date, is, without having been used after that date, first let) in its entirety under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (except for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

‘refurbishment’ means—

(a) in relation to a building, either or both of the following—

(i) the carrying out of any works of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, and

(ii) the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities,

where the carrying out of such works or the provision of such facilities is certified by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, in any certificate of reasonable cost or certificate of compliance, as the case may be, granted by that Minister in relation to any house contained in the building, to have been necessary for the purposes of ensuring the suitability as a dwelling of any house in the building and whether or not the number of houses in the building, or the shape or size of any such house, is altered in the course of such refurbishment,

(b) in relation to a facade, any work of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal carried out in the course of the repair or restoration, or maintenance in the nature of repair or restoration of a facade;

‘relevant expenditure’ means expenditure incurred on the refurbishment of a specified building, other than expenditure attributable to any part (in this section referred to as a ‘non-residential unit’) of the building which on completion of the refurbishment is not a house, and for the purposes of this definition where expenditure is attributable to the specified building in general (and not directly to any particular house or non-residential unit comprised in the building on completion of the refurbishment), such an amount of that expenditure shall be deemed to be attributable to a non-residential unit as bears to the whole of that expenditure the same proportion as the total floor area of the non-residential unit bears to the total floor area of the building;

‘relevant period’, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning on the date of the completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates or, if the premises was not let under a qualifying lease on that date, the period of 10 years beginning on the date of the first such letting after the date of such completion;

‘specified building’ means a building or part of a building—

(a) the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area,

(b) in which before the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates there is one or more than one house, and

(c) which on completion of that refurbishment contains (whether in addition to any non-residential unit or not) one or more than one house;

‘street’ includes part of a street and the whole or part of any road, square, quay or lane.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred relevant expenditure in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises—

(a) such person shall be entitled, in computing for the purposes of section 97(1) the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the qualifying premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of the expenditure as is to be treated under section 372AI(7) or under this section as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period, and

(b) Chapter 8 of Part 4 shall apply as if that deduction were a deduction authorised by section 97(2).

(3) (a) This subsection shall apply to any premium or other sum which—

(i) is payable, directly or indirectly, under a qualifying lease or otherwise under the terms subject to which the lease is granted, to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor, and

(ii) is payable on or subsequent to the date of completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates or, if payable before that date, is so payable by reason of or otherwise in connection with the carrying out of the refurbishment.

(b) Where any premium or other sum to which this subsection applies, or any part of such premium or such other sum, is not or is not treated as rent for the purposes of section 97, the relevant expenditure to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed for the purposes of subsection (2) to be reduced by the lesser of—

(i) the amount of such premium or such other sum or, as the case may be, that part of such premium or such other sum, and

(ii) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in subparagraph (i) the same proportion as the amount of the relevant expenditure actually incurred in relation to the qualifying premises which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(4) Where a qualifying premises forms a part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms a part of a building which is itself one of a number of buildings in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary of the relevant expenditure incurred on that building or those buildings for the purposes of determining the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(5) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs—

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then, the person who before the occurrence of the event received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (2) in respect of relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence of the event an amount as rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(6) Where the event mentioned in subsection (5)(b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of relevant expenditure in relation to the house equal to the amount of the relevant expenditure which under section 372AI(7) or under this section (apart from subsection (3)(b)) the lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the house; but, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed—

(a) the net price paid by such person on the purchase, or

(b) in case only a part of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to that net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house.

(7) Where relevant expenditure is incurred in relation to a house and before the house is used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure it is sold, the person who purchases the house shall be treated for the purposes of this section as having incurred in the qualifying period relevant expenditure in relation to the house equal to the lesser of—

(a) the amount of such expenditure which is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, and

(b) (i) the net price paid by such person on the purchase, or

(ii) in case only a part of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to that net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house;

but, where the house is sold more than once before it is used subsequent to the incurring of the relevant expenditure in relation to the house, this subsection shall apply only in relation to the last of those sales.

(8) This section shall not apply in the case of any refurbishment unless planning permission, in so far as it is required, in respect of the work carried out in the course of the refurbishment has been granted under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts, 1963 to 1999.

(9) Expenditure in respect of which a person is entitled to relief under this section shall not include any expenditure in respect of which any person is entitled to a deduction, relief or allowance under any other provision of the Tax Acts.

(10) Section 372AI shall apply for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Residential accommodation allowance to owner-occupiers in respect of certain expenditure on construction or refurbishment.

372AH.—(1) In this section—

‘facade’ has the same meaning as in section 372AG;

‘qualifying expenditure’, in relation to an individual, means an amount equal to the amount of the expenditure incurred by the individual on the construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment of a qualifying premises which is a qualifying owner-occupied dwelling in relation to the individual after deducting from that amount of expenditure any sum in respect of or by reference to—

(a) that expenditure,

(b) the qualifying premises, or

(c) the construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment work in respect of which that expenditure was incurred,

which the individual has received or is entitled to receive, directly or indirectly, from the State, any board established by statute or any public or local authority;

‘qualifying owner-occupied dwelling’, in relation to an individual means a qualifying premises which is first used, after the qualifying expenditure has been incurred, by the individual as his or her only or main residence;

‘qualifying premises’, in relation to the incurring of qualifying expenditure, means, subject to subsections (4) and (5) of section 372AI, a house—

(a) the site of which is wholly within a qualifying area,

(b) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(c) in respect of which there is in force either a certificate of compliance or, if it is not a house provided for sale, a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment of the house is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such construction or refurbishment, as the case may be, but where the qualifying expenditure relates solely to a facade this paragraph shall not apply, and

(d) the total floor area of which is not less than 38 square metres and not more than 125 square metres;

‘refurbishment’ has the same meaning as in section 372AG;

‘street’ has the same meaning as in section 372AG.

(2) (a) Where an individual, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred qualifying expenditure in a year of assessment, the individual shall be entitled, for that year of assessment and for any of the 9 subsequent years of assessment in which the qualifying premises in respect of which the individual incurred the qualifying expenditure is the only or main residence of the individual, to have a deduction made from his or her total income of an amount equal to—

(i) in the case where the qualifying expenditure has been incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises, 5 per cent of the amount of that expenditure, or

(ii) in the case where the qualifying expenditure has been incurred on the refurbishment of the qualifying premises, 10 per cent of the amount of that expenditure.

(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), where the individual, or, being a husband or wife, the individual's spouse, is assessed to tax in accordance with section 1017, the individual shall, except where section 1023 applies, be entitled to have the deduction, to which he or she is entitled under paragraph (a), made from his or her total income and the total income of his or her spouse, if any.

(c) A deduction shall be given under this section in respect of qualifying expenditure only in so far as that expenditure is to be treated under section 372AI(7) as having been incurred in the qualifying period.

(3) Where qualifying expenditure in relation to a qualifying premises is incurred by 2 or more persons, each of those persons shall be treated as having incurred the expenditure in the proportions in which they actually bore the expenditure, and the expenditure shall be apportioned accordingly.

(4) (a) Section 372AE(4), in relation to the apportionment of qualifying expenditure incurred on the construction of a qualifying premises and section 372AE(7), in relation to the amount of expenditure to be treated as incurred in the qualifying period on the construction of a house which is sold before it is used, shall, with any necessary modifications, apply in relation to qualifying expenditure incurred on the construction of a qualifying premises within the meaning of this section, as they apply in relation to expenditure incurred under section 372AE.

(b) Section 372AG(4), in relation to the apportionment of relevant expenditure incurred on the refurbishment of a qualifying premises, and section 372AG(7), in relation to the amount of relevant expenditure to be treated as incurred in the qualifying period on the refurbishment of a house which is sold before it is used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure, shall, with any necessary modifications, apply in relation to qualifying expenditure incurred on the refurbishment of a qualifying premises within the meaning of this section, as they apply in relation to relevant expenditure incurred under section 372AG.

(5) Section 372AI shall apply for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Provisions supplementary to sections 372AE to 372AH.

372AI.—(1) In sections 372AE to 372AH—

‘certificate of compliance’ means a certificate granted by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government (on foot of an application received by that Minister within a period of one year from the day next after the end of the qualifying period) for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH, as the case may be, stating that the house, to which the certificate relates, at the time of granting the certificate and on the basis of the information available to that Minister at that time—

(a) complies—

(i) in the case of construction, with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government from time to time for the purposes of section 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards of construction of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services in houses,

(ii) in the case of conversion or refurbishment, with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government from time to time for the purposes of section 5 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards for improvement of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services in houses,

(b) stating that the total floor area of the house is within the floor area limits as specified in the definition of qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH, and

(c) in the case of refurbishment, that the work was necessary for the purposes of ensuring the suitability as a dwelling of any house in the building;

‘certificate of reasonable cost’ means a certificate granted by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government (on foot of an application received by that Minister within a period of one year from the day next after the end of the qualifying period) for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH, as the case may be, stating that the amount specified in the certificate in relation to the cost of construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the house to which the certificate relates appears to that Minister at the time of the granting of the certificate and on the basis of the information available to that Minister at that time to be reasonable, and section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , shall, with any necessary modifications, apply to a certificate of reasonable cost as if it were a certificate of reasonable value within the meaning of that section;

‘house’ includes any building or part of a building used or suitable for use as a dwelling and any outoffice, yard, garden or other land appurtenant to or usually enjoyed with that building or part of a building;

‘total floor area’ means the total floor area of a house measured in the manner referred to in section 4(2)(b) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 .

(2) A lease shall not be a qualifying lease for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF or 372AG if the terms of the lease contain any provision enabling the lessee or any other person, directly or indirectly, at any time to acquire any interest in the house to which the lease relates for a consideration less than that which might be expected to be given at that time for the acquisition of the interest if the negotiations for that acquisition were conducted in the open market at arm's length.

(3) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF or 372AG if—

(a) it is occupied as a dwelling by any person connected with the person entitled, in relation to the expenditure incurred on the construction of, conversion into, or, as the case may be, refurbishment of, the house, to a deduction under section 372AE(2), 372AF(4) or 372AG(2), as the case may be, and

(b) the terms of the qualifying lease in relation to the house are not such as might have been expected to be included in the lease if the negotiations for the lease had been at arm's length.

(4) (a) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AE or, in so far as it applies to expenditure other than expenditure on refurbishment, section 372AH unless it complies with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government from time to time for the purposes of section 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards of construction of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services in houses.

(b) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AF or 372AG or, in so far as it applies to expenditure on refurbishment, section 372AH unless it complies with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government from time to time for the purposes of section 5 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards for improvements of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services in houses but this paragraph shall not apply where the expenditure incurred on a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AG or section 372AH relates solely to a facade within the meaning of those sections.

(c) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH unless the house or, in a case where the house is one of a number of houses in a single development, the development of which it is a part complies with such guidelines as may from time to time be issued by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, for the purposes of furthering the objectives of urban renewal and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, such guidelines may include provisions in relation to all or any one or more of the following—

(i) the design and the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, houses,

(ii) the total floor area and dimensions of rooms within houses, measured in such manner as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government,

(iii) the provision of ancillary facilities and amenities in relation to houses, and

(iv) the balance to be achieved between houses of different types and sizes within a single development of 2 or more houses or within such a development and its general vicinity having regard to the housing existing or proposed in that vicinity.

(5) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH unless persons authorised in writing by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government for the purposes of those sections are permitted to inspect the house at all reasonable times on production, if so requested by a person affected, of their authorisations.

(6) For the purposes of sections 372AE to 372AH, references in those sections to the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, any premises shall be construed as including references to the development of the land on which the premises is situated or which is used in the provision of gardens, grounds, access or amenities in relation to the premises and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, as including in particular—

(a) demolition or dismantling of any building on the land,

(b) site clearance, earth moving, excavation, tunnelling and boring, laying of foundations, erection of scaffolding, site restoration, landscaping and the provision of roadways and other access works,

(c) walls, power supply, drainage, sanitation and water supply, and

(d) the construction of any outhouses or other buildings or structures for use by the occupants of the premises or for use in the provision of amenities for the occupants.

(7) (a) For the purposes of determining, in relation to any claim under section 372AE(2), 372AF(4), 372AG(2) or 372AH(2), as the case may be, whether and to what extent expenditure incurred on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, a qualifying premises is incurred or not incurred during the qualifying period, only such an amount of that expenditure as is properly attributable to work on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the premises actually carried out during the qualifying period shall be treated as having been incurred during that period.

(b) Where by virtue of subsection (6) expenditure on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, a qualifying premises includes expenditure on the development of any land, paragraph (a) shall apply with any necessary modifications as if the references in that paragraph to the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the qualifying premises were references to the development of such land.

(8) (a) For the purposes of sections 372AE and 372AF other than the purposes mentioned in subsection (7)(a), expenditure incurred on the construction of, or, as the case may be, conversion into, a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(b) For the purposes of section 372AG other than the purposes mentioned in subsection (7)(a), relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the refurbishment of a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the date of the commencement of the relevant period, in relation to the premises, determined as respects the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates.

(c) For the purposes of section 372AH other than the purposes mentioned in subsection (7)(a), expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the earliest date after the expenditure was actually incurred on which the premises is in use as a dwelling.

(9) For the purposes of sections 372AE to 372AG, expenditure shall not be regarded as incurred by a person in so far as it has been or is to be met, directly or indirectly, by the State, by any board established by statute or by any public or local authority.

(10) Section 555 shall apply as if a deduction under section 372AE(2), 372AF(4) or 372AG(2), as the case may be, were a capital allowance and as if any rent deemed to have been received by a person under section 372AE(5), 372AF(7) or 372AG(5), as the case may be, were a balancing charge.

(11) An appeal to the Appeal Commissioners shall lie on any question arising under this section or under section 372AE, 372AF, 372AG or 372AH (other than a question on which an appeal lies under section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 ) in the like manner as an appeal would lie against an assessment to income tax or corporation tax, and the provisions of the Tax Acts relating to appeals shall apply accordingly.

Non-application of relief in certain cases and provision against double relief.

372AJ.—(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, sections 372AC and 372AD shall not apply—

(a) in respect of expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure or a qualifying premises—

(i) where a property developer is entitled to the relevant interest, within the meaning of section 269, in relation to that expenditure, and

(ii) either the person referred to in subparagraph (i) or a person connected (within the meaning of section 10) with that person incurred the expenditure on the construction or refurbishment of the building, structure or premises concerned,

(b) in respect of expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure or a qualifying premises where such building or structure or premises is in use for the purposes of a trade, or any activity treated as a trade, carried on by the person who is entitled to the relevant interest, within the meaning of section 269, in relation to that expenditure and such trade or activity is carried on wholly or mainly—

(i) in the sector of agriculture, including the production, processing and marketing of agricultural products,

(ii) in the coal industry, fishing industry or motor vehicle industry, or

(iii) in the transport, steel, ship-building, synthetic fibres or financial services sectors,

or

(c) in relation to any building or structure or qualifying premises which is provided for the purposes of a project, the regional aid for which is limited under the ‘Multisectoral framework on regional aid for large investment projects’1 prepared by the Commission of the European Communities.

(2) For the purposes of sections 372AC, 372AD, 372AF and 372AG, where the site of any part of a building or structure is situated outside the boundary of a qualifying area and where expenditure incurred or treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period is attributable to the building or structure in general, such an amount of that expenditure shall be deemed to be attributable to the part which is situated outside the boundary of the qualifying area as bears to the whole of that expenditure the same proportion as the floor area of the part situated outside the boundary of the qualifying area bears to the total floor area of the building or structure.

(3) Where relief is given by virtue of any provision of this Chapter in relation to capital expenditure or other expenditure incurred on any building, structure or premises, relief shall not be given in respect of that expenditure under any other provision of the Tax Acts.”,

(b) in section 458 by the insertion in Part 1 of the Table to that section after “Section 372Y” (inserted by the Finance Act, 1999 ) of “Section 372AH”, and

(c) by the substitution in section 1024(2)(a)(i) of “372RA, 372Y and 372AH” for “372RA and 372Y”.

1 O.J. No. C107, 7.4.1998, p.7