Revenue Note for Guidance

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Revenue Note for Guidance

1095 Tax clearance certificates: general scheme

Summary

This section provides for a generally applicable tax clearance procedure to cover applications for tax clearance for whatever purpose other than those required under —

  1. section 1094 (in relation to certain licences), or
    1. section 847A (in relation to sports bodies within that section),
    2. the Standards in Public Office Act, 2001, or
    3. the Free Legal Aid Board Regulations.

A tax clearance certificate will be issued on application where the applicant and certain other specified persons connected with the applicant are in compliance with their obligations under the Acts and any instruments made under the Acts governing income tax, corporation tax, capital gains tax and VAT in relation to —

  • the payment of taxes, interest and penalties, and
  • the delivery of returns.

Appeals are provided for against a refusal of the Collector-General to issue a tax clearance certificate.

Details

Definitions

(1) “the Acts” are defined in a list of statutes and instruments made thereunder which cover the taxes, levies, duties and charges under the care and management of the Revenue Commissioners. The Acts concerned are —

  • the Customs Acts,
  • the statutes relating to excise duties and the management of those duties,
  • the Tax Acts,
  • Parts 18A, 18B, 18C and 18D,
  • the Capital Gains Tax Acts,
  • the Value-Added Tax Acts,
  • the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012,
  • the statutes relating to stamp duty and to the management of that duty,
  • the Capital Acquisitions Tax Consolidation Act 2003, and the enactments amending or extending that Act.

“licence” is given the same meaning as in section 1094.

“tax clearance certificate” is to be construed in accordance with subsection (3).

Application of section

(2) The provisions of this section apply to every application made to the Collector-General for a tax clearance certificate except applications for a tax clearance certificate made —

  1. in relation to a licence (section 1094), or
  2. under the requirements of —
    1. section 847A (which concerns donations to certain approved sports bodies),
    2. the Standards in Public Office Act, 2001, or
    3. Regulation 6 of the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) (Tax Clearance Certificate) Regulations of 1999.

Issue of tax clearance certificate

(3) Subject to this section, the Collector-General is to issue a tax clearance certificate on application where the applicant is in compliance with his or her obligations under the Acts in relation to —

  • the payment or remittance of the taxes, interest or penalties required to be paid or remitted under the Acts, and
  • the delivery of and returns to be made under the Acts.

(4) A tax clearance certificate is not to be issued to a person unless both that person and certain specified other persons are in compliance with the obligations imposed by the Acts. In addition to the person applying for the tax clearance certificate, the persons concerned are —

  • any partnership of which the person is or was a member, in respect of the period of membership of the partnership,
  • where the applicant is a partnership, each partner, and
  • where the applicant is a company, every person who owns or is able to control, directly or indirectly, more than 50 per cent of the ordinary share capital of the company.

(5) A tax clearance certificate is not to be issued to an applicant where the business activity carried on by the applicant was previously carried on by, or was previously carried on as part of a business activity carried on by, another person who is connected (within the meaning of section 10) with the applicant in certain circumstances, unless that other person is also in compliance with the obligations as regards payment of tax and delivery of returns. The persons who are to be considered as connected are —

  • any company connected with the applicant,
  • where the applicant is a partnership and the business was previously carried on by a company in which a partner or partners of that partnership are or were able, directly or indirectly, either on their own or with a connected person able to control more than 50 per cent of the ordinary share capital of the company, that company, or
  • where the applicant is a company and the business was previously carried on by a partnership and a partner or partners of that partnership are or were able, directly or indirectly, either on their own or with a connected person able to control more than 50 per cent of the ordinary share capital of the company, that partner or partners.
    (6) The provisions of subsections (5) to (9) of section 1094 apply to an application for a tax clearance certificate under this section.

Relevant Date: Finance Act 2019