485A Relief for gifts made to designated schools.

(1) In this section—

“appropriate percentage”, in relation to a year of assessment, means a percentage equal to the standard rate of tax for that year;

“approved body” means a body of persons which is—

(a) established solely for the purpose of raising funds for the benefit of one or more named designated schools,

(b) composed of persons who are patrons, trustees, owners or governors of that one or those named designated schools, and

(c) is approved of for the purposes of this section by the Minister;

“designated school” means a primary or post-primary school which is in receipt of enhanced grants made by the Minister out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas;

“enhanced grants” mean grants, being grants that are greater than the capitation grants normally paid by the Minister to primary or post-primary schools, paid to schools a substantial proportion of the students of which are, in the opinion of the Minister, socially or economically disadvantaged;

“Minister” means the Minister for Education and Science;

“relevant gift” means a gift of money which—

(a) on or after the 6th day of April, 1998, is made to a designated school for the sole purpose of funding the activities of that school or to an approved body for the sole purpose of funding the activities of one or more than one named designated school,

(b) is or will be applied by the designated school or the approved body, as the case may be, for that purpose, and

(c) apart from this section is not deductible in computing for the purposes of tax the profits or gains of a trade or profession or is not income to which the provisions of section 792 apply, or is not a gift of money to which the provisions of section 484 apply;

“tax” means income tax or corporation tax, as the case may be.

(2) Where it is proved to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners that a person has made a relevant gift and claims relief from tax by reference to that gift, the provisions of subsection (4) or, as the case may be, subsection (7) shall apply.

(3) In determining the net amount of the relevant gift for the purposes of subsections (4) and (7), the amount or value of any consideration received by the person concerned as a result of making the gift, whether received directly or indirectly from the designated school or the approved body to which the gift was made or otherwise, shall be deducted from the amount of the gift.

(4) For the purposes of income tax for the year of assessment in which a person makes a relevant gift the income tax to be charged on the person for that year of assessment, other than in accordance with section 16(2), shall be reduced by an amount which is the lesser of—

(a) the amount equal to the appropriate percentage of the net amount of the relevant gift, and

(b) the amount which reduces that income tax to nil.

(5) For the purposes of subsection (4), in the case of a person assessed to tax for a year of assessment in accordance with section 1017, any relevant gift made by the person’s spouse in that year, in respect of which the person’s spouse would have been entitled to relief under this section if that spouse were assessed to tax for the year of assessment in accordance with section 1016 (apart from subsection (2) of that section), shall be deemed to have been made by the person, and, accordingly, subsection (6) shall apply to that relevant gift separately from any relevant gift made by the person.

(6) Relief under this section shall not be given to a person for a year of assessment—

(a) if the net amount of the relevant gift (or the aggregate of the net amount of relevant gifts) made by the person in the year of assessment does not exceed £250, or

(b) to the extent to which the net amount of the relevant gift (or the aggregate of the net amount of the relevant gifts) made by the person in the year of assessment exceeds £1,000.

(7) Where a relevant gift is made by a company in an accounting period, the net amount of the gift shall, for the purposes of corporation tax, be treated as—

(a) a deductible trading expense of a trade carried on by the company, or

(b) an expense of management deductible in computing the total profits of the company,

for the accounting period.

(8) Relief under this section shall not be given—

(a) in respect of a relevant gift or gifts made by a company in an accounting period to a particular designated school or approved body, as the case may be—

(i) if the net amount of the relevant gift (or the aggregate of the net amount of relevant gifts) does not exceed £250, or

(ii) to the extent to which the net amount of the relevant gift (or the aggregate of the net amount of relevant gifts) exceeds £10,000,

or

(b) to the extent to which the aggregate of the net amount of all relevant gifts made by a company in an accounting period to more than one designated school and approved body, exceeds the lesser of—

(i) £50,000, or

(ii) 10 per cent of the profits before account is taken of the relief under this section for the accounting period of the company.

(9) Where a relevant gift is made by a company in an accounting period of the company which is less than 12 months, the amounts of £10,000 and £50,000 specified in subsection (8) shall be proportionately reduced.

(10) Where a relevant gift is made by a chargeable person within the meaning of Part 41, a claim under this section shall be made with the return required to be delivered by that person under section 951 for the chargeable period in which the gift is made.

(11) Where any question arises as to whether for the purposes of this section—

(a) a body is an approved body,

(b) a school is a designated school, or

(c) a gift is a relevant gift,

the Revenue Commissioners may consult the Minister.

(12) Every designated school, when required to do so by notice in writing from the Minister, shall, within the time limited by the notice, prepare and deliver to the Minister a return containing particulars of the aggregate amount of relevant gifts received by the school in the period specified in the notice.

(13) Every approved body when required to do so by notice in writing from the Minister, shall, within the time limited by the notice, prepare and deliver to the Minister a return containing particulars of the aggregate amount of relevant gifts received by the body in the period specified in the notice and the disposal of such gifts.

(14) A relevant gift shall be deemed to be made to a designated school for the purposes of this section where it is made to any person or persons who exercise any control, management or trusteeship functions over, or in respect of, the school.

(15) For the purposes of a claim to relief under this section, a designated school or an approved body shall, on acceptance of a relevant gift, give to the person making the relevant gift a receipt which shall—

(a) contain a statement that—

(i) it is a receipt for the purposes of this section,

(ii) the school or body is a designated school or approved body, as the case may be, for the purposes of this section, and

(iii) the gift in respect of which the receipt is given is a relevant gift for the purposes of this section, and

(b) show—

(i) the name and address of the person making the relevant gift,

(ii) the net amount of the relevant gift in both figures and words,

(iii) the date of the relevant gift,

(iv) the full name of the designated school or approved body, as the case may be, and

(v) the date on which the receipt was issued, and

(c) be signed by a duly authorised official of the designated school or approved body.