Finance Act 2015

Finance Act 2015 Skip to content Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Gaeilge Léim go dtí an t-ábhar Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach English Gaeilge English Produced by the Office of the Attorney General Táirgthe ag Oifig an Ard-Aighne Home Legislation Acts of the Oireachtas Statutory Instruments Pre-1922 Legislation Constitution External Resources Bills (Houses of the Oireachtas) Iris Oifigiúil / Official Gazette Revised Acts (LRC) Classified List of Legislation (LRC) Translations (acts.ie) Translations (Houses of the Oireachtas) Government Publications for Sale EU Law (EUR-Lex) FAQ Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Search Baile Reachtaíocht Achtanna an Oireachtais Ionstraimí Reachtúla Reachtaíocht Réamh-1922 Bunreacht Acmhainní Seachtracha Billí (Tithe an Oireachtais) Iris Oifigiúil Achtanna Athbhreithnithe (CAD) (An Coimisiún um Athchóiriú an Dlí) Liosta Rangaithe Reachtaíochta Aistriúcháin (achtanna.ie) Aistriúcháin (Tithe an Oireachtais) Foilseacháin Rialtais ar Díol Dlí AE (EUR-Lex) CCanna (Ceisteanna Coitianta) Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach Cuardach TitleTeideal Year(s) or rangeBliain nó blianta nó raon TypeCineál All Legislation Acts Statutory Instruments Advanced SearchCuardach Casta HomeBaile ActsAchtanna 2015 Finance Act 2015 Finance Act 2015 Permanent Page URL View by SectionAmharc de réir Ailt View Full ActAmharc ar an Acht Iomlán Bill History Stair Bille Commencement, Amendments, SIs made under the Act Tosach Feidhme, Leasuithe, IRí arna ndéanamh faoin Acht Open PDFOscail PDF Print Full ActPriontáil an tAcht Iomlán Number 52 of 2015 FINANCE ACT 2015 CONTENTS

PART 1

Universal Social Charge, Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax

Chapter 1

Interpretation Section

Section 1

Chapter 2

Universal Social Charge

Section 2

Chapter 3

Income Tax

Section 3

Section 4

Section 5

Section 6

Section 7

Section 8

Section 9

Section 10

Section 11

Section 12

Section 13

Section 14

Chapter 4

Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax

Section 15

Section 16

Section 17

Section 18

Section 19

Section 20

Section 21

Section 22

Section 23

Section 24

Section 25

Section 26

Section 27

Section 28

Section 29

Chapter 5

Corporation Tax

Section 30

Section 31

Section 32

Section 33

Section 34

Chapter 6

Capital Gains Tax

Section 35

Section 36

Section 37

Section 38

Section 39

Section 40

Section 41

Section 42

PART 2

Excise

Section 43

Section 44

Section 45

Section 46

Section 47

Section 48

Section 49

Section 50

PART 3

Value-Added Tax

Section 51

Section 52

Section 53

Section 54

Section 55

Section 56

Section 57

Section 58

Section 59

Section 60

PART 4

Stamp Duties

Section 61

Section 62

Section 63

Section 64

Section 65

PART 5

Capital Acquisitions Tax

Section 66

Section 67

PART 6

Miscellaneous

Section 68

Section 69

Section 70

Section 71

Section 72

Section 73

Section 74

Section 75

Section 76

Section 77

Section 78

Section 79

Section 80

Section 81

Section 82

Section 83

Section 84

Section 85

Section 86

Section 87

Section 88

Section 89

Section 90

PART 1

Universal Social Charge, Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax

Chapter 1

Interpretation Interpretation (Part 1) 1. In this Part “Principal Act” means the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 .

Chapter 2

Universal Social Charge Amendment of Part 18D of Principal Act (universal social charge) 2. (1) Part 18D of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in section 531AM— (i) in paragraph (a) of the Table to subsection (1) — (I) in subparagraph (IV), by substituting “Schedule 3,” for “Schedule 3, and”, (II) in subparagraph (V), by substituting “782A(3), and” for “782A(3).”, and (III) by inserting the following subparagraph after subparagraph (V): “(VI) emoluments in the nature of a contribution by an employer to a PRSA (within the meaning of Chapter 2A of Part 30).”, and (ii) in subsection (2), by substituting “€13,000” for “€12,012”, and (b) in section 531AN— (i) in subsection (3) by substituting— (I)“€18,668” for “€17,576”, and (II)“3 per cent” for “3.5 per cent”, (ii) in subsection (3A)(a) by substituting “3 per cent” for “3.5 per cent”, (iii) by inserting the following after subsection (4): “(5) Subject to subsection (7), where relevant emoluments are paid on 31 December in a tax year or, if that year is a leap year, on 30 or 31 December in that year (referred to in this section as the ‘relevant date’) to an individual who is paid weekly or fortnightly, the part of aggregate income specified in column (1) of Part 1 or column (1) of Part 2, as appropriate, of the Table to this section shall be increased by— (a) where the individual is paid weekly, one-fifty second of the amounts referred to in the appropriate column, and (b) where the individual is paid fortnightly, one-twenty sixth of the amounts referred to in the appropriate column, but where the relevant emoluments paid on the relevant date is less than the increase provided in paragraph (a) or (b), as appropriate, the increase in the part of the aggregate income shall be limited to the amount of the relevant emoluments.

PART 1

Part of aggregate income Rate of universal social charge

(1)

PART 2

Part of aggregate income Rate of universal social charge

(1)

Chapter 3

Income Tax Earned income tax credit 3. (1) The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following after section 472AA: “472AB. (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; ‘qualifying earned income’ means earned income but does not include emoluments within the meaning of section 472.

Amendment of section 466A of Principal Act (home carer tax credit) 4. (1) Section 466A of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in subsection (2), by substituting “€1,000” for “€810”, and (b) in subsection (6)(a), by substituting “€7,200” for “€5,080”.

Amendment of section 192A of Principal Act (exemption in respect of certain payments under employment law) 5. Section 192A(1) of the Principal Act is amended in the definition of “relevant authority” by substituting the following for paragraph (b): “(b) the Director of the Equality Tribunal, (ba) an adjudication officer of the Workplace Relations Commission, (bb) the Workplace Relations Commission, (bc) the District Court,”.

Exemption in respect of certain expense payments for relevant directors 6. The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following section after section 195A: “Exemption in respect of certain expense payments for relevant directors 195B. (1) In this section— ‘company’ has the same meaning as it has in section 4; ‘director’ has the same meaning as it has in section 770; ‘expenses’ means vouched expenses; ‘relevant director’, in relation to a company, means a director who is not resident in the State and is a non-executive director of that company; ‘relevant meeting’ means a meeting attended by a relevant director in his or her capacity as a director for the purposes of the conduct of the affairs of the company; ‘travel’ means travel by car, motorcycle, taxi, bus, rail, boat or aircraft.

Exemption in respect of certain expenses of State Examinations Commission examiners 7. The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following section after section 195B: “Exemption in respect of certain expenses of State Examinations Commission examiners 195C. (1) In this section— ‘civil servant’ has the meaning assigned to it by the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956 ; ‘employee’ has the same meaning as in section 983; ‘examination purposes’ means: (a) the development of examination papers or other examination materials; (b) the marking of such papers or other such materials; or (c) the carrying out of invigilator duties at an examination; ‘examination’ means any examination standing specified for the time being in Schedule 2 to the Education Act 1998; ‘examination paper’ includes any paper, plan, map, drawing, diagram, pictorial or graphic work or other document and any photograph, film or recording (whether of sound or images or both)— (a) in which questions are set for answer by candidates as part of an examination or which are related to such questions, or (b) in which projects or practical exercises are set which candidates are required to complete as part of an examination or which are related to such projects or exercises; ‘examiner’ means, other than a person employed as an Examinations and Assessment Manager, a person who is an employee of the relevant employer for examination purposes; ‘relevant employer’ means the State Examinations Commission; ‘travel’ means travel by car, motorcycle, taxi, bus or rail.

Amendment of section 470 of Principal Act (relief for insurance against expenses of illness) 8. (1) Section 470 of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (1) by substituting the following for the definition of “child”: “ ‘child’ means an individual under the age of 21 years in respect of whom the payment under a relevant contract has been reduced in accordance with paragraph (a)(ii) or (b)(i)(I) of section 7

Amendment of section 477B of Principal Act (home renovation incentive) 9. Section 477B of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (2) — (a) in paragraph (a) by substituting “2016” for “2015” in each place where it occurs, and (b) in paragraph (d) — (i) by substituting “2016” for “2015” in each place where it occurs, and (ii) by substituting “2017” for “2016” in each place where it occurs.

Professional services withholding tax 10. (1) The definition of “professional services” in section 520(1) of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in paragraph (d) by substituting “other legal services, and” for “other legal services,”, (b) in paragraph (e) by substituting “geological services;” for “geological services, and”, and (c) by deleting paragraph (f).

Granting of vouchers 11. (1) The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following after section 112A: “112B. (1) In this section— ‘benefit’ means a tangible asset other than cash; ‘qualifying incentive’ means either a voucher or a benefit that is given to an employee by his or her employer in a year of assessment where the following conditions are satisfied: (a) the voucher or the benefit does not form part of a salary sacrifice arrangement; (b) the voucher can only be used to purchase goods or services and cannot be redeemed, in full or in part, for cash; (c) the voucher or the benefit cannot exceed €500 in value; (d) not more than one voucher or benefit can be given to that employee in any year of assessment; ‘salary sacrifice arrangement’ means any arrangement under which an employee forgoes the right to receive any part of his or her remuneration due under his or her terms or contract of employment and in return his or her employer agrees to provide him or her with a qualifying incentive.

Amendment of section 372AP of Principal Act (relief for lessors) 12. (1) Section 372AP of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following subsection after subsection (13): “(13A) Section 555 shall apply as if a deduction under this section were a capital allowance and, where subsection (7) applies, as if the amount represented by ‘A’ in the formula in that subsection were a balancing charge.”.

Amendment of section 959B of Principal Act (supplemental interpretation provisions) 13. (1) Section 959B of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (1)(a) by substituting “€5,000” for “€3,174”.

Amendment of Schedule 25B to Principal Act (list of specified reliefs and method of determining amount of specified relief used in a tax year) 14. (1) Schedule 25B to the Principal Act is amended by deleting the entry at Reference Number 7 and the matters set out opposite that reference number.

Chapter 4

Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax Amendment of section 97 of Principal Act (computational rules and allowable deductions) 15. (1) Section 97 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following subsection after subsection (2J): “(2K) (a) In this subsection— ‘Board’ means the Private Residential Tenancies Board; ‘household’ has the meaning assigned by the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 ; ‘housing authority’ has the meaning assigned by the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 ; ‘lease’ means any lease or tenancy in respect of a residential premises required to be registered by the person chargeable under Part 7 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 ; ‘Minister’ means Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government; ‘qualifying lease’ means a lease granted by the person chargeable to a qualifying tenant; ‘qualifying tenant’, in relation to a qualifying lease, means— (i) a household in respect of which rent is payable by a housing authority— (I) in accordance with Part 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 , or (II) under a contract under section 19 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 , between the housing authority and the person chargeable, or (ii) an individual in respect of whom a rent supplement is payable by, or on behalf of, the Minister for Social Protection; ‘register’ means the private residential tenancies register maintained by the Board under Part 7 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 ; ‘relevant borrowings’ means borrowed money employed in the purchase, improvement or repair of a premises or a part of a premises which, at a time interest accrues on the borrowings, is a residential premises let under a qualifying lease; ‘relevant interest’, in relation to relevant borrowings and a specified period, means the amount by which the aggregate deductions authorised by subsection (2)(e) are reduced by the application of subsection (2J) in respect of that part of the chargeable periods (within the meaning of section 321) that falls within the specified period and, for the purposes of this definition, interest shall be treated as accruing from day to day; ‘relevant undertaking’, in relation to a residential premises, means an undertaking under paragraph (b) (i) ; ‘rent supplement’ means any payment under section 198 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 towards the amount of rent payable by an individual in respect of a residential premises; ‘specified period’ means a continuous period of 3 years commencing on or after 1 January 2016 but not later than 31 December 2019.

(b) (i) The person chargeable shall submit to the Board, in such form and containing such information as shall be prescribed by the Minister for the purposes of this subsection, an undertaking to the effect that the person chargeable will let a residential premises under a qualifying lease for the duration of a specified period commencing on— (I) in the case of a qualifying lease commencing on or after 1 January 2016, the date of commencement of that lease, or (II) in the case of a lease that commenced prior to 1 January 2016, which would, if the lease commenced on that date, be a qualifying lease, 1 January 2016. (ii) The Board shall register the relevant undertaking in the register, and the provisions of Part 7 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 shall apply to information regarding a relevant undertaking registered in the register as they apply to information regarding a tenancy registered in the register, subject to any necessary modifications. (iii) A relevant undertaking shall be submitted to the Board under subparagraph (i) — (I) in the case of a lease referred to in clause (I) of that subparagraph, at the time the person chargeable is required to make an application to register the tenancy under section 134 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004, and (II) in any other case, by 31 March 2016. (iv) Where the person chargeable submits a relevant undertaking in accordance with this paragraph and, following the end of the specified period (in this subparagraph referred to as the ‘first period’), submits a relevant undertaking (in this subparagraph referred to as the ‘subsequent undertaking’) in respect of a subsequent specified period (in this subparagraph referred to as the ‘second period’), the second period shall commence on— (I) in the case of a qualifying lease commencing on or after the day following the end of the first period, the date of commencement of that lease, and (II) in the case of a qualifying lease that commenced before the end of the first period, the day following the end of the first period, and the subsequent undertaking shall be submitted to the Board— (A) in the case of a lease referred to in clause (I), at the time referred to in subparagraph (iii)(I), and (B) in any other case, not later than 3 months after the second period commences, and subparagraph (ii) shall apply to a subsequent undertaking as it applies to an undertaking. (c) For the purposes of this subsection, where a lease has commenced before 1 January 2016, which would, if the lease commenced on that date, be a qualifying lease and a relevant undertaking is submitted to and registered by the Board, the lease shall be deemed to be a qualifying lease commencing on 1 January 2016.

(d) (i) For the purposes of this subsection, where a qualifying lease (in this subparagraph referred to as the ‘first lease’) terminates during a specified period the currency of that lease shall be deemed to include a period immediately following its termination (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘intervening period’) if— (I) at the end of the intervening period, the person chargeable grants a subsequent qualifying lease in respect of the residential premises (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘subsequent lease’), and (II) during the intervening period— (A) the premises was not let under a lease that was not a qualifying lease, (B) the person chargeable immediately before the termination was not in occupation of the premises or any part of the premises but was entitled to possession of the premises, and (C) a person connected (within the meaning of section 10) with the person chargeable was not in occupation of the premises or any part of the premises, and the first lease and the subsequent lease shall be taken together and treated as one qualifying lease. (ii) More than one subsequent lease may be granted in respect of a premises under and in accordance with subparagraph (i). (e) For the purposes of this subsection, where a qualifying tenant ceases to be a qualifying tenant during a specified period, the lease shall nonetheless be treated as a qualifying lease for so much of that period as the tenant occupies the premises under the lease. (f) This subsection shall apply where the following conditions are met: (i) a residential premises is let under a qualifying lease for one or more than one specified period, and (ii) a relevant undertaking in respect of that premises for each specified period is submitted to and registered by the Board. (g) (i) Subject to this section, a person chargeable who meets the conditions referred to in paragraph (f) may, after the end of the specified period, make a claim to have a deduction authorised by subsection (2)(e) in respect of the residential premises referred to in paragraph (f) computed as if the relevant interest for the specified period accrued on the day immediately following the end of that specified period, and subsection (2J) shall not apply to that relevant interest. (ii) The relevant interest referred to in subparagraph (i) shall not be included in any computation of relevant interest for a specified period subsequent to the specified period referred to in that subparagraph. (h) Any claim under this subsection shall—

(i) contain a statement to the effect that the conditions referred to in paragraph (f) are satisfied, and (ii) be furnished to the Revenue Commissioners by electronic means and through such electronic systems as the Revenue Commissioners may make available for the time being for the purpose of a claim, and the relevant provisions of Chapter 6 of Part 38 shall apply. (i) Where a premises in respect of which the person chargeable is entitled to a rent is let in part under a qualifying lease and in part under a lease other than a qualifying lease (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘other lease’), the amount of deduction authorised under subsection (2)(e) by reference to interest on borrowed money employed in the purchase, improvement or repair of those premises shall be computed on the amount of interest on that part of the borrowed money which can, on a just and reasonable basis, be respectively attributed to the parts of the premises which are let under the qualifying lease and the other lease. (j) Notwithstanding section 886, where a person chargeable makes a claim under this subsection, the period for which the linking documents and records (within the meaning of that section) relating to the claim are to be retained by the person required to keep the records under that section shall commence on the final day of the specified period in respect of which the claim is made.”.

Amendment of section 256 of Principal Act (interpretation (Chapter 4)) 16. Section 256(1) of the Principal Act is amended in the definition of “relevant deposit” by inserting the following subparagraph after paragraph (a)(iiif): “(iiig) the Minister for Social Protection in respect of accounts held under section 9 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 ,”.

Amendment of section 481 (relief for investment in films) and section 851A (confidentiality of taxpayer information) of Principal Act 17. (1) Section 481 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in subsection (1) — (i) by substituting the following for the definitions of “broadcast” and “broadcaster”: “ ‘broadcast’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 2 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 ; ‘broadcaster’ means a person who has responsibility for a ‘broadcasting service’ as defined in section 2 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 ;”, and (ii) in paragraph (c) of the definition of “film corporation tax credit” by substituting “€70,000,000” for “€50,000,000”, and (b) in subsection (3A)(c)(II) by substituting “fortieths” for “forty-firsts”.

Income tax relief for investment in corporate trades - employment and investment incentive and seed capital scheme 18. (1) Section 27 of the Finance Act 2014 is amended— (a) in subsection (1) (a) (ii), in paragraph (d) of the definition of “relevant period”, by substituting “ ‘relevant amount’ ” for “ ‘average relevant amount’ ”, (b) in subsection (1)(g) by substituting “Article 11 of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014 of 17 June 201413 ” for “section 5.4 of the Community Guidelines on State aid to promote risk finance investments3”, and (c) in subsection (2) by substituting the following for paragraph (b): “(b) Paragraphs (a) and (c) to (g) of subsection (1) have effect in respect of shares issued on or after 13 October 2015.”.

and (c) is comprised in a development where— (i) those units are operated or managed by the registered nursing home and an on-site caretaker is provided, and (ii) back-up medical care, including nursing care, is provided by the registered nursing home to the occupants of those units when required by those occupants; ‘relevant amount’ means total emoluments (other than non-pecuniary emoluments) paid by a qualifying company to qualifying employees as referred to in the definition of ‘employment relevant number’, in the year of assessment in which, in relation to a subscription for eligible shares, a relevant period ends; ‘threshold amount’ means the total of the emoluments (other than non- pecuniary emoluments) paid by a qualifying company to the qualifying employees referred to in the definition of ‘employment threshold number’, in the year of assessment preceding the year of assessment in which the subscription for eligible shares was made but where there was a general reduction in the basic pay rate of qualifying employees then the threshold amount shall be reduced accordingly;”, (b) in section 489— (i) by substituting the following for subsection (1)(b): “(b) those shares are issued to the individual for the purpose of raising money by a qualifying company where that money was used, is being used or is intended to be used by the qualifying company— (i) for the purposes of carrying on relevant trading activities, (ii) in the case of a company which has not commenced to trade, in incurring expenditure on research and development within the meaning of section 766, or (iii) in the case of a company that owns and operates a qualifying nursing home, for the purposes of enlarging the capacity of the qualifying nursing home, and”, (ii) by inserting the following after subsection (3): “(3A) Notwithstanding subsection (3), where— (a) in accordance with section 506, relief is due in respect of an amount subscribed between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2014 as nominee for a qualifying individual by the managers of a designated fund, and (b) the eligible shares in respect of which the amount is subscribed are issued between 1 January 2016 and 31 January 2016, the individual may elect by notice in writing to the inspector to have the relief due under subsection (2)(a) given as a deduction from his or her total income for the year of assessment in which the amount was subscribed to the designated fund instead of (as provided for in subsection (2)(a)) as a deduction from his or her total income for the year of assessment in which the shares are issued.”,

and (iii) by substituting the following for subsection (10) (a): “(a) (i) the employment relevant number exceeds the employment threshold number by at least one qualifying employee, and (ii) the relevant amount exceeds the threshold amount by at least the total emoluments of one qualifying employee in the year of assessment in which the relevant period ends, or”, and (c) in section 494— (i) by inserting the following after subsection (4): “(4A) A company that does not meet the requirements of paragraphs 5 and 6 of Article 21 of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014 of 17 June 201414 shall not be a qualifying company.”, and (ii) by inserting the following after subsection (7): “(7A) A company whose relevant trading activities includes operating a qualifying nursing home and is engaged in enlarging its capacity pursuant to section 489(1) (b) (iii) shall cease to be a qualifying company unless it has expended all of the money subscribed for eligible shares on such activities, within a period ending 30 days before the end of the relevant period.”.

Farming and market gardening 19. (1) Section 598 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in subsection (1)(a), by inserting the following definition: “ ‘farm partnership’ means a milk production partnership or a registered farm partnership (within the meaning of section 667C);”, and (b) in subsection (1)(d)(iib), by substituting “farm partnership” for “milk production partnership” in both places where it occurs.

(d) in section 667B— (i) in subsection (5) (b), by substituting “2018” for “2015”, and (ii) in paragraph 2 of the Table to that section— (I) in subparagraph (q), by substituting “Sustainable Agriculture,” for “Sustainable Agriculture.”, and (II) by inserting the following after subparagraph (q): “(r) Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Agriculture.”, (e) in section 667C— (i) in subsection (1) by— (I) substituting “In this section and sections 667D to 667G” for “In this section”, (II) inserting the following definitions: “ ‘common agricultural payments’ means any payment arising directly to a partner under the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union; ‘excluded farm asset’ means farm land or livestock or machinery used for any of the following farming activities where that activity is excluded, by the terms of the partnership agreement, from the partnership: (a) pig farming; (b) poultry farming; (c) mushroom farming; (d) forestry; (e) bloodstock farming; (f) intensive horticultural cropping; (g) on-farm milk processing, other than milking and storage of milk; (h) generation of fuel or electricity; ‘farm asset’, other than an excluded farm asset, means— (a) farm land, (b) an entitlement to common agricultural payments, and (c) livestock or machinery used for farming, but shall not include farm land which is to be disposed of to an authority possessing compulsory purchase powers where the disposal would not be made but for the exercise of those powers, or the giving by the authority concerned of formal notice of its intention to exercise those powers; ‘farm land’ means land which includes a building (other than a building or part of a building used as a dwelling) occupied by a partner for the purposes of farming that land; ‘Minister’ means Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine; ‘non-active partner’ means— (a) in the case of an individual, an individual who, during the accounting period spends not more than an average of at least 10 hours per week personally engaged in the activities of the several trade, or (b) in the case of a company, a company whose officers and employees, during the accounting period between them, spend an average of not more than 10 hours per week personally engaged in the activities of the several trade, where the activities of the several trade are carried on on a commercial basis and in such a way that profits of the several trade could reasonably be expected to be made in that period or within a reasonable time thereafter; ‘partner’ means a person who is a partner in a registered farm partnership;

‘primary participant’ means the precedent partner, within the meaning of section 1007; ‘register’ means the register of farm partnerships established and maintained by the Minister under and in accordance with this section and regulations under subsection (4A); ‘register of succession farm partnerships’ shall be construed in accordance with section 667D(1); ‘several trade’ has the meaning given to it by section 1008.”, and (III) substituting the following for the definition of registered farm partnership: “ ‘registered farm partnership’ means a farm partnership entered on the register;”, and (ii) by inserting the following subsection after subsection (1): “(1A) (a) A primary participant, in relation to a farm partnership, may apply to the Minister to enter the farm partnership on the register and shall comply with all requirements relating to the application specified in regulations made under subsection (4A). (b) In order to be entered on the register, a farm partnership shall comply with all of the following conditions: (i) the farm partnership shall exist wholly for the purpose of carrying on the trade of farming; (ii) the farm partnership agreement shall be in writing and shall: (I) comply with the Partnership Act 1890 ; (II) include information identifying the partners, the farm land farmed by the partnership, relating to their shares in the partnership and to the operation of the partnership; (III) commit the partners to the agreement to a period of operation as a farm partnership of not less than 5 years, (iii) subject to subsection (1C), the farm partnership shall have at least 2 members and not more than 10 members; (iv) no member of the farm partnership shall be a non-active partner; (v) of the members of the farm partnership— (I) at least one shall be a person who has been engaged in the trade of farming on farm land owned or leased by that person, consisting of at least 3 hectares of useable farm land, for at least 2 years immediately preceding the date of formation of the partnership, and (II) other than the person referred to in clause (I), at least one is a natural person and either satisfies the requirements of clause (I) or— (A) has a qualification in agriculture specified in regulations made under subsection (4A) or, if not so specified a qualification determined by Teagasc - the Agriculture and Food Development Authority, to the satisfaction of the Minister, as being equivalent to a qualification so specified, and (B) under the terms of the farm partnership, holds an entitlement to at least 20 per cent of the profits of the partnership;

(vi) other than an excluded farm asset, a partner in a farm partnership shall not have an interest in any farm asset outside of the farm partnership at any time during the period of registration of the farm partnership, and for the purposes of this section, farm land owned or leased by a partner but licensed to the farm partnership concerned shall not be treated as the partner having an interest in land outside of the farm partnership; (vii) any payment arising to a partner in a farm partnership, from the trade of farming for the purposes of the farm partnership agreement is liable to be, and shall be paid by the partner to the farm partnership.”. (iii) by inserting the following subsection after subsection (1A) (inserted by subparagraph (ii)): “(1B) (a) The primary participant shall notify the Minister within 21 days of any change to the farm partnership or its activities and failure to do so shall result in the removal of the partnership from the register from the date of the change unless the Minister is satisfied that— (i) the change does not affect the farm partnership’s eligibility to be entered, and remain on, the register, and (ii) the failure was neither the result of careless nor deliberate behaviour on the part of the precedent partner and it is remedied without unreasonable delay upon the precedent partner becoming aware of the failure. (b) (i) The primary participant shall notify the Minister, prior to a new partner joining, or an existing partner ceasing to be a partner in the farm partnership (in this paragraph referred to as an ‘alteration’), of the proposed alteration and shall request the Minister to amend the relevant entry on the register accordingly. (ii) The Minister shall not approve a proposed alteration and amend the relevant entry on the register under subparagraph (i) unless he or she is satisfied that the farm partnership will continue to comply with the requirements of this section, and that the proposed alteration is made for bona fide commercial purposes.”, (iv) by inserting the following subsection after subsection (1B) (inserted by subparagraph (iii)): “(1C) A farm partnership shall not be eligible to be entered on the register if any partner in that partnership— (a) is a director of a company that is also a partner in that farm partnership, or (b) has a shareholding in a company— (i) that is also a partner in that farm partnership, or (ii) has a shareholding in a company which directly or indirectly has a shareholding in a company which is a partner in that farm partnership.”,

(v) by inserting the following subsection after subsection (1C) (inserted by subparagraph (iv)): “(1D) (a) The Minister shall only enter a farm partnership on the register where he or she is satisfied that the farm partnership has met the conditions set out in subsection (1A). (b) Where the Minister is not satisfied that the farm partnership is continuing to meet the conditions set out in subsection (1A), then the Minister shall remove the partnership from the register with effect from the date upon which the partnership ceased to meet those conditions. (c) A farm partnership shall stand suspended from the register where an order has been made under section 9 of the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 , which relates to an area where any part of the farm land of the partnership is situated, but each partner in a partnership that is so suspended shall continue to be treated as a partner in a registered farm partnership for the purposes of subsection (2).”. (vi) in subsection (2) (b), by substituting “2018” for “2015” in both places where it occurs, (vii) in subsection (3A)(a), in paragraph (ii) of the definition of “qualifying period” by substituting “years of assessment” for “years of assessment where the specified person is not a company”, (viii) in subsection (4) by substituting “2018” for “2015”, and (ix) in subsection (4A)(a) — (I) by substituting “The Minister,” for “The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (in this subsection referred to as the ‘Minister’),” (II) by substituting “and those regulations may make separate provision for different classes of farm partner and farm partnership and may provide for-” for “and those regulations may provide for-”, and (III) by substituting the following for subparagraphs (i) to (vi): “(i) different divisions of the register relating to different classes of registered farm partnership, (ii) the form and manner of, and information and documentation required for, an application for entry on the register, (iii) the form and manner of registration of a farm partnership on the register, (iv) the assignment of a unique identifier to a farm partnership entered on the register and purposes for which and conditions subject to which, it may be used, (v) procedures where subsection (1B) or subsection (1D)(b) applies, (vi) the agriculture qualifications required by a person for the purposes of subsection (1A)(c), (vii) conditions relating to what the Minister considers to be an appropriate distance between farm land to be used by the partners in carrying on the several trade, having regard to resources and best agricultural practice, provided that no part shall be more than 75 kilometres from another part, and

(viii) such supplemental, transitional and incidental matters as appear to the Minister to be necessary and appropriate.”, (f) by inserting the following section after section 667C— “Succession farm partnerships 667D. (1) A primary participant, in relation to a registered farm partnership may apply to the Minister to also enter the registered farm partnership on the register of succession farm partnerships established and maintained under and in accordance with this section and regulations under subsection (7) (in this section referred to as the ‘register of succession farm partnerships’) and shall comply with all requirements relating to the application so specified.

Petroleum production tax 20. The Principal Act is amended in Part 24 by inserting the following Chapter after Chapter 3: “Chapter 4 Petroleum production Tax Interpretation and application (Chapter 4) 696G. (1) In this Chapter— ‘cumulative field costs’, in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means the aggregate of field costs— (a) for that relevant period, and (b) for any preceding relevant period; ‘cumulative field gross revenue’, in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means the aggregate of the gross revenues— (a) for that relevant period, and (b) for any preceding relevant period, less the aggregate petroleum production tax payable by the company in respect of the same taxable field for all preceding relevant periods; ‘eligible expenditure’, in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means the aggregate of the amounts of— (a) all expenditure, including exploration and development expenditure wholly and exclusively incurred by the company in the carrying on of petroleum activities for the relevant period in respect of a taxable field, (b) all expenditure, including exploration and development expenditure wholly and exclusively incurred by the company in the carrying on of petroleum activities in respect of any preceding relevant period where such expenditure was not previously allowed as a deduction in computing petroleum production tax, and (c) all abandonment expenditure where an allowance may be claimed by reference to the provisions of section 695; ‘field costs’, in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means the aggregate of all expenditure, including exploration expenditure, development expenditure and transportation expenditure, wholly and exclusively incurred by the company in the carrying on of petroleum activities in respect of that taxable field; ‘gross revenue’ means all sales of petroleum extracted for a relevant period from a taxable field including any amounts derived from the assignment, disposal or sale of any assets, interests, options or rights attaching to or related to a taxable field; ‘net income’, in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means the gross revenue less eligible expenditure incurred in respect of that taxable field; ‘petroleum production tax’ has the meaning given to it by section 696H; ‘relevant period’ means an accounting period or part of an accounting period which commences on or after 18 June 2014;

‘R factor’ in relation to a relevant period of a company in respect of a taxable field, means an amount determined by the formula— A B where— A is the cumulative field gross revenue of the company in respect of the taxable field in relation to that relevant period, and B is the cumulative field costs of the company in respect of the taxable field in relation to that relevant period; ‘specified licence’ means— (a) an exploration licence (other than a licence arising from the exercise of a licensing option issued prior to 18 June 2014), (b) a reserved area licence, or (c) a licensing option, that is granted on or after 18 June 2014; ‘taxable field’ means an area which was the subject of a specified licence and which is now the subject of a petroleum lease; ‘transportation expenditure’ means expenses incurred wholly and exclusively on the transportation of petroleum via pipeline from the taxable field to a place where it is first landed in the State or if produced on a platform, from the wellhead to the carrier if the carrier serves as the point of export.

Charge to petroleum production tax 696H. (1) (a) An additional duty (in this Chapter referred to as a ‘petroleum production tax’) shall be charged for each taxable field in a relevant period of a company and the amount so charged shall be an amount calculated in accordance with paragraph (b). (b) The amount calculated in accordance with this paragraph shall be the greater of— (i) 5 per cent of the gross revenue less transportation expenditure, or (ii) (I) 10 per cent of the net income, where the R factor in relation to a taxable field is equal to 1.5, (II) an amount determined by the formula— multiplied by the net income, where the R factor in relation to a taxable field is greater than 1.5 and less than 4.5, or (III) 40 per cent of the net income, where the R factor in relation to a taxable field is equal to or greater than 4.5.

Petroleum production tax and corporation tax 696I. In computing the amount of profits or gains to be charged to corporation tax a company shall be entitled to claim a deduction in respect of any petroleum production tax payable in respect of any taxable field for that relevant period.

Provisions relating to groups 696J. (1) Where eligible expenditure in respect of a taxable field is incurred by a company (in this section referred to as the ‘first company’), and (a) another company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the first company, or (b) the first company is, at the time the eligible expenditure is incurred, a wholly-owned subsidiary of another company (in this section referred to as the ‘parent company’), then, the expenditure or so much of it as the first company specifies, may at the election of that company be deemed to be eligible expenditure in respect of the taxable field incurred— (i) in the case referred to in paragraph (a), by such other company (being a wholly-owned subsidiary of the first company) as the first company specifies, and (ii) in the case referred to in paragraph (b), by the parent company or by such other company (being a wholly-owned subsidiary of the parent company) as the first company specifies.

Returns 696K. (1) In this section ‘prescribed form’ means a form prescribed by the Revenue Commissioners or a form used under the authority of the Revenue Commissioners.

Payment of tax 696L. Petroleum production tax appropriate to a relevant period is due and payable on or before the day on which a company carrying on petroleum activities in a taxable field is required to deliver a return, under section 959I, for that relevant period.

Collection and general provisions 696M. (1) The provisions of Part 41A relating to— (a) assessments to corporation tax, and (b) the collection and recovery of corporation tax, shall apply in relation to petroleum production tax as they apply to corporation tax charged otherwise than under this Chapter.

Amendment of Chapter 1 of Part 33 of Principal Act (anti-avoidance) 21. (1) Chapter 1 of Part 33 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in section 806 by inserting the following after subsection (10): “(11) (a) For the purposes of this subsection— ‘non-resident person’ means a person resident or domiciled out of the State as referred to in subsection (3) or (5); ‘relevant Member State’ means a state, other than the State, which is a Member State of the European Union, or not being such a Member State, a state which is a contracting party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2 May 1992 as adjusted by the Protocol signed at Brussels on 17 March 1993; ‘relevant transactions’ has the same meaning as it has in subsection (10). (b) Where a non-resident person is resident in a relevant Member State, subsection (10) shall apply as if the following were substituted for paragraphs (b), (c), (d) and (e) of that subsection: ‘(b) Subsections (4) and (5) shall not apply where the individual concerned shows in writing or otherwise to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners that— (i) it would not be reasonable to draw the conclusion that the relevant transactions form part of any arrangement or scheme of which the main purpose is, or one of the main purposes is, the avoidance of a liability to tax, and (ii) genuine economic activities are carried on by the non- resident person in the relevant Member State.’.”, (b) in section 807 by deleting subsection (5), and (c) in section 807A— (i) by deleting subsection (5), and (ii) in subsection (7) by substituting “, (10) and (11) ” for “and (10) ”.

Amendment of Schedule 2 to Principal Act (machinery for assessment, charge and payment of tax under Schedule C and, in certain cases, Schedule D) 22. Schedule 2 to the Principal Act is amended in Part 4 by substituting “46 days” for “20 days” in paragraph 15(1).

Amendment of section 730E of Principal Act (declarations) 23. (1) Section 730E(2) of the Principal Act is amended by deleting “at or about the time of the inception of the life policy” in paragraph (a).

Charities Regulatory Authority and Common Investment Fund 24. (1) The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following section after section 207: “207A. (1) In this section— ‘Fund’ means the Common Investment Fund (formerly known as the ‘The Commissioners Common Investment Fund’) established by the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests for Ireland under section 46 of the Charities Act 1961 with effect from 23 April 1985 and vested in the Charities Regulatory Authority on the establishment of that Authority on 16 October 2014; ‘relevant income’ means the income of the Fund.

Amendment of Part 18 of Principal Act (payments in respect of professional services by certain persons and payments to subcontractors in certain industries) 25. Part 18 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in section 530(1) by inserting the following definition: “‘designated area’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 13(1);”, and (b) in section 530(4) by inserting “or in a designated area” after “carried out in the State”.

Amendment of Part 27 of Principal Act (unit trusts and offshore funds) 26. Chapter 1 of Part 27 of the Principal Act is amended in section 734(1)(a) in the definition of “collective investment undertaking”— (a) by substituting “undertaking,” for “undertaking, and” in subparagraph (iii), (b) by substituting “investors,” for “investors;” in subparagraph (iv)(II)(B)(cc), and (c) by inserting the following after subparagraph (iv): “and (v) an authorised ICAV (within the meaning of section 2 of the Irish Collective Asset-management Vehicles Act 2015 (No. 2 of 2015));”.

Industrial building allowances: aviation services facilities 27. (1) The Principal Act is amended— (a) in section 268— (i) in subsection (1F), by substituting “then, notwithstanding that subsection, that capital expenditure shall not, as regards a claim for any allowance under this Part by any such person, be regarded as specified capital expenditure for the purposes of this Part,” for “then, notwithstanding that subsection, that building or structure shall not, as regards a claim for any allowance under this Part by any such person, be regarded as an industrial building or structure for the purposes of this Part,”, (ii) by substituting the following for subsection (5A): “(5A) Subject to subsection (5C), expenditure incurred by a person on the construction of an industrial building or structure (within the meaning of subsection (1)(n)) shall be treated as specified capital expenditure for the purposes of this Part— (a) only to the extent that the aggregate of such expenditure does not exceed— (i) €5,000,000, where the person concerned is a company, and (ii) €1,250,000, where the person concerned is an individual, and (b) where the following information has been provided to the Revenue Commissioners before the first claim for a writing-down allowance is made, in accordance with section 272, by the person: (i) the name, address and tax reference number (within the meaning of section 477B(1) ) of the person making the claim; (ii) the address of the building or structure in respect of which the expenditure was incurred or deemed to have been incurred; (iii) details of the aggregate of the amount of such expenditure which has been incurred or deemed to have been incurred by the person making the claim.”, (iii) in subsection (5B)— (I) by substituting “subsection (5A)(b) ” for “subsection (5A)(c) ”, and (II) by substituting “necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Part and any European Commission guidelines, regulations or other reporting requirements, as the case may be, that may be relevant.” for “reasonably related to achieving the following objective.”, (iv) by substituting the following for subsection (5C): “(5C) Where capital expenditure has been incurred, or deemed to have been incurred, on the construction of an industrial building or structure (within the meaning of subsection (1)(n)) by 2 or more persons, being either individuals or companies, or both, the amount of such expenditure which is to be treated as specified capital expenditure for the purposes of this Part shall, if necessary and notwithstanding section 279, be reduced such that the amount determined by the formula—

(A x 50 per cent) + (B x 12½ per cent) does not exceed €625,000, where— A is the aggregate of all such specified capital expenditure which has been incurred, or deemed to have been incurred, by the individual or individuals concerned, and B is the aggregate of all such specified capital expenditure which has been incurred, or deemed to have been incurred, by the company or companies concerned.”, (v) by deleting subsections (5D) and (5E), (vi) in subsection (9), by substituting the following for paragraph (k): “(k) by reference to paragraph (n), as respects— (i) specified capital expenditure incurred in the period commencing on the date of the coming into operation of section 31 of the Finance Act 2013 and ending on the fifth anniversary of that date, and (ii) capital expenditure other than specified capital expenditure incurred on or after the date of the coming into operation of section 31 of the Finance Act 2013 .”, and (vii) by inserting the following after subsection (11): “(11A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Part, capital expenditure which has been incurred on the construction of an industrial building (within the meaning of subsection (1)(n)) shall not be treated as specified capital expenditure where any part of that expenditure has been or is to be met, directly or indirectly, by grant assistance or any other assistance which is granted by or through the State, any board established by statute, any public or local authority or any other agency of the State.”, (b) in section 272— (i) by substituting the following for paragraph (k) of subsection (3): “(k) in relation to a building or structure which is to be regarded as an industrial building or structure within the meaning of paragraph (n) of section 268(1) — (i) 15 per cent of the expenditure referred to in subsection (2)(c), if that expenditure is specified capital expenditure, and (ii) 4 per cent of the expenditure referred to in subsection (2)(c), if that expenditure is not specified capital expenditure.”, and (ii) by substituting the following for paragraph (k) of subsection (4): “(k) in relation to a building or structure which is to be regarded as an industrial building or structure within the meaning of paragraph (n) of section 268(1) — (i) where the expenditure is specified capital expenditure, 7 years beginning with the time when— (I) the building or structure was first used, or (II) where the expenditure is incurred on refurbishment, the building or structure was first used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure,

and (ii) where the expenditure is not specified capital expenditure, 25 years beginning with the time when— (I) the building or structure was first used, or (II) where the expenditure is incurred on refurbishment, the building or structure was first used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure.”, (c) in section 274(1)(b) by substituting the following for subparagraph (x): “(x) in relation to a building or structure which is to be regarded as an industrial building or structure within the meaning of paragraph (n) of section 268(1) — (I) where the expenditure is specified capital expenditure— (A) 7 years after the building or structure was first used, or (B) where the expenditure is incurred on refurbishment of the building or structure, 7 years after the building or structure was first used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure, and (II) where the expenditure is not specified capital expenditure— (A) 25 years after the building or structure was first used, or (B) where the expenditure is incurred on refurbishment of the building or structure, 25 years after the building or structure was first used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure.”, and (d) in Schedule 25B— (i) by substituting the following for clause (VIII) of paragraph (a)(i) of the matter set out opposite reference number 13: “(VIII) section 268(1)(n) (inserted by the Finance Act 2013 ) to the extent that the writing-down allowances are referable to specified capital expenditure (within the meaning of section 268),”, and (ii) by substituting the following for clause (VIII) of paragraph (a)(i) of the matter set out opposite reference number 15: “(VIII) section 268(1)(n) (inserted by the Finance Act 2013 ) to the extent that the balancing allowances are referable to specified capital expenditure (within the meaning of section 268),”.

(2)

Section 31

of the Finance Act 2013 is amended by substituting the following for subsection (2): “(2) This section comes into operation on 13 October 2015.”.

(3)

Section 33

of the Finance Act 2014 is amended by substituting the following for subsection (2): “(2) This section comes into operation on 13 October 2015.”.

Amendment of section 1035A of Principal Act (relieving provision to section 1035) 28. Section 1035A of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (1) — (a) by inserting the following definitions: “ ‘AIF’ has the same meaning as in section 747G; ‘AIFM’ has the same meaning as in section 747G; ‘branch or agency’ has the same meaning as in section 4; ‘EEA state’ has the same meaning as in section 747B; ‘relevant AIFM Directives’ has the same meaning as in section 747G;”, and (b) in the definition of “authorised agent”— (i) by substituting “revoked,” for “revoked, or” in paragraph (b), and (ii) by inserting the following after paragraph (c): “or (d) an AIFM authorised— (i) under any laws of the State which implement the relevant AIFM Directives, or (ii) under the laws of an EEA state and which manages one, or more than one, AIF through a branch or agency in the State,”.

Amendment of Part 36 of Principal Act (miscellaneous special provisions) 29. Part 36 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following after section 845B: “Treatment of Additional Tier 1 instruments 845C. (1) In this section— ‘Additional Tier 1 instrument’ means an instrument which qualifies, or has qualified, as an Additional Tier 1 instrument under Article 52 of the Capital Requirements Regulation; ‘Capital Requirements Regulation’ means Regulation (EU) No. 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 201321 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No. 648/201222 ; ‘coupon’ means a distribution, within the meaning of Article 4 of the Capital Requirements Regulation, in respect of an Additional Tier 1 instrument.

Chapter 5

Corporation Tax Amendment of section 486C of Principal Act (relief from tax for certain start-up companies) 30. Section 486C of the Principal Act is amended in subsection (2)(a) by substituting “31 December 2018” for “31 December 2015”.

Amendment of section 765 of Principal Act (allowances for capital expenditure on scientific research) 31. Section 765 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) in subsection (1), by substituting the following paragraph for paragraph (d): “(d) so applies— (i) in the case where the expenditure was incurred while carrying on the trade, within 24 months after the end of the chargeable period in which it was incurred, or (ii) in the case where the expenditure was incurred before the setting up and commencement of the trade, within 24 months after the end of the chargeable period in which the trade was set up and commenced, and any asset representing such capital expenditure on scientific research is in use for the purposes of scientific research at the end of the chargeable period,”, and (b) in subsection (4) by inserting “or any subsequent” after “284 for that”.

Amendment of Part 29 of Principal Act (patents, scientific and certain other research, know-how and certain training) 32. (1) The Principal Act is amended— (a) in Part 29 by inserting the following Chapter after Chapter 4: “Chapter 5 Taxation of Companies Engaged in Knowledge Development Interpretation and general 769G. (1) In this Chapter— ‘accounting period’ in relation to a company, means an accounting period determined in accordance with section 27; ‘acquisition costs’, in relation to expenditure incurred on a qualifying asset, means the expenditure incurred on the acquisition of intellectual property, or rights over intellectual property, where that intellectual property is reflected in the value of the qualifying asset, but where expenditure incurred on acquiring the intellectual property is incurred otherwise than by means of a bargain made at arm’s length, that acquisition shall, for the purposes of this Chapter, be deemed to be for a consideration equal to the open market value of the intellectual property; ‘group’ means a company and all of its 51 per cent subsidiaries; ‘group outsourcing costs’, in relation to a qualifying asset, means any amount incurred in carrying on research and development activities which results in a qualifying asset, where that amount is not qualifying expenditure but would be qualifying expenditure on a qualifying asset— (a) if the research and development activities were carried on in a Member State, or (b) but for subsection (2)(b)(iii) or (vi), and shall not include any amount of qualifying expenditure or acquisition costs; ‘intellectual property’, other than for the purposes of the definition of ‘acquisition costs’ or ‘marketing-related intellectual property’ in this subsection and without prejudice to section 769R, means— (a) a computer program, within the meaning of the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000 , but, where a computer program is a derivative work or adaptation, the portion of the computer program that represents the derivative work or the adaptation of the original work and the original work shall be treated as two separate computer programs, or (b) an invention protected by— (i) a qualifying patent, (ii) any supplementary protection certificate issued under Council Regulation (EC) No. 469/2009 of 6 May 200923 concerning protection for medicinal products or any such certificate extended in accordance with Article 36 of Regulation (EC) 1901/2006, (iii) any supplementary protection certificate issued under Regulation (EC) No. 1610/96 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 199624

concerning protection for plant protection products, or (iv) any plant breeders’ rights within the meaning of section 4 of the Plant Varieties (Proprietary Rights) Act 1980 ; ‘interest’, unless the context otherwise requires, includes any interest payable on a debt instrument, any discount on the issue of such an instrument, and any premiums paid or payable on redemption of such an instrument, or on the capital represented by such an instrument; ‘marketing-related intellectual property’ includes trademarks, brands, image rights and other intellectual property used to market goods or services; ‘Member State’ has the same meaning as ‘relevant Member State’ has in section 766; ‘overall expenditure on the qualifying asset’, means— (a) the qualifying expenditure incurred in relation to that qualifying asset, and (b) the aggregate of the acquisition costs and the group outsourcing costs relating to that qualifying asset, incurred in any accounting period; ‘overall income from the qualifying asset’ means the following amounts arising in respect of an accounting period— (a) any royalty or other sums in respect of the use of that qualifying asset, (b) where the sales price of a product or service, excluding both duty due or payable and any amount of value-added tax charged in the sales price, includes an amount which is attributable to a qualifying asset, such portion of the income from those sales as, on a just and reasonable basis, is attributable to the value of the qualifying asset, (c) any amount for the grant of a licence to exploit that qualifying asset, and (d) any amount of insurance, damages or compensation in relation to the qualifying asset, where that amount is taken into account in computing, for the purposes of assessment to corporation tax, the profits of a trade, and overall income from qualifying assets shall be construed accordingly; ‘qualifying asset’ means an asset which is intellectual property, other than marketing-related intellectual property, and which is the result of research and development activities; ‘qualifying expenditure on the qualifying asset’ has the meaning assigned to it in subsection (2) and qualifying expenditure in relation to all qualifying assets shall be construed accordingly; ‘qualifying patent’ means— (a) a patent granted following substantive examination for novelty and inventive step, or (b) a patent, other than a short term patent within the meaning of section 63 of the Patents Act 1992 , or an equivalent provision in another jurisdiction, where—

(i) the Patents Office in the State, or equivalent Office elsewhere, has caused a search to be undertaken in relation to the invention and a search report (within the meaning of section 29 of the Patents Act 1992 ) prepared, and (ii) either— (I) the patent was granted prior to 1 January 2016, or (II) the patent was granted on or after 1 January 2016 and before 1 January 2017 and a patent agent, within the meaning of section 106 of the Patents Act 1992 , certifies that in his or her opinion such a patent meets the patentability criteria, in that the invention is susceptible of industrial application, new and involves an inventive step, but this paragraph is subject to section 769I(6)(a)(i)(VII); ‘relevant company’ means a company which carries on a specified trade and is within the charge to tax in the State, and where two or more companies carry on that specified trade in partnership then each company that is within the charge to tax in the State shall be a relevant company; ‘research and development activities’ has the meaning assigned to it in section 766; ‘specified trade’ has the meaning assigned to it in subsection (3); ‘up-lift expenditure’, in relation to a qualifying asset, is the lower of— (a) 30 per cent of the amount of the qualifying expenditure on the qualifying asset, or (b) the aggregate of acquisition costs and group outsourcing costs.

(III) may otherwise be allowed or relieved in relation to the company, for the purposes of tax in a territory other than the State.

Families of products and assets 769H. (1) This section has effect where— (a) a relevant company has a number of qualifying assets, and (b) owing to the interlinked nature of the qualifying assets and their use in the specified trade, it would be reasonable to conclude that it would not be possible for the relevant company to identify the overall expenditure on each qualifying asset or the overall income from each qualifying asset.

Corporation tax referable to a specified trade 769I.(1) For the purposes of this section qualifying profits, in relation to a qualifying asset, shall be the amount determined by the formula— where— QE is the qualifying expenditure on the qualifying asset, UE is the uplift expenditure, OE is the overall expenditure on the qualifying asset, and QA is the profit of the specified trade relevant to the qualifying asset before taking account of any allowance available under subsection (5).