Section 181 looks like a section with a story behind it. What gave rise to this?
SECTION 181.
Question proposed: "That section 181 stand part of the Bill."
It is a short amnesty from the interest in penalties payable for late payments of stamp duties and documents which were executed prior to last November, and were unstamped on 30th January, the day after the budget announcement of the amnesty. The reason is to give people an opportunity to pay the duty before September of this year. If the duty is paid between 30 June and 30 September, interest and penalties will be payable only for that period. Full interest on penalties will be calculated with effect from the date on which the document was executed. The approach is similar to what was adopted in other tax amnesties. It was intended to encourage taxpayers to pay earlier rather than later. It also has the effect of rectifying a number of documents of certificates that have been held outside the system for years without duty being paid. It implies far more. We could stand firm on this but it could create more difficulties in years to come.
It is a short amnesty. There is no particular beneficiary?
The ordinary public would benefit. People should take this opportunity to regularise their stamp duty affairs.
There would be many such people around Dublin Central.
There would be more around this area. They would do well to take this opportunity of tidying up their affairs.
It is just where there were documents which has been in the net but were not executed or properly stamped? Is that the situation?
They were executed, but not stamped. There were great legal difficulties with them. Instruments could not be registered until they were stamped.
Do the changes announced affect the situation which was the case heretofore, that is, where documents were submitted with the certificate of escrow, in other words, the valuable consideration was not passed until later on, even though the document was stamped at a very early stage? The money was not paid later on. Would that have been taken into account when the budget was framed?
I am not totally sure, but I do not think there is any change in the position as outlined by Deputy D. Ahern. It applies only where documents which are registered, but unstamped are sitting in people's offices.
Unfortunately, it can happen that the money has not changed hands even though the document has been signed although not registered and not stamped. When they came to actually stamping it, because of the delay between the date of signing and the day of paying the stamp duty, exemption could, up to now, be obtained. Does that still apply? It would appear so.
I am advised that Revenue would consider those documents executed. Therefore, in cases such as that mentioned by the Deputy, they should take the benefit of the amnesty. The amnesty is intended to clear the stamp duty system of old unstamped documents and to lead to the collection of duty now, which might not otherwise be paid for sometime. It will give taxpayers a once-off opportunity to clear long outstanding tax liabilities without payment of any penalties.
Question put and agreed to.
Section 182 agreed to.