Written Answers Nos. 78-85
78. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Finance if in assessing the valuation of a property for the property tax, the existence of an enurement clause on a planning which restricts the sale of a house and therefore its valuation will be taken into account when the value of a house is being assessed for the tax; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10765/13]
View answerThe Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 sets out how the tax is to be administered and how a residential property is to be valued for LPT purposes.
I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that Local Property Tax (LPT) is a self-assessed tax so in the first instance it is a matter for the property owner to calculate the tax due based on his or her assessment of the chargeable value of the property. The chargeable value is defined in the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 and means the price that the unencumbered fee simple of a residential property might be expected to fetch on a sale on the open market were that property to be sold on the valuation date of 1 May 2013, in a manner that would secure the best possible price for the property. Therefore, in assessing the market value of a residential property no account may be taken of any encumbrance or restriction on the sale of a property such as the enurement clause referred to by Deputy Ó Cuív.
I am further advised that the Revenue Commissioners are preparing valuation guidance which, taken together with the owner’s own knowledge of the property, will assist him or her in assessing its value. The guidance will include an online guide that will provide indicative property valuation bands depending on the property type, age and location and it will be available on the Revenue website prior to the issue of returns to property owners. The guidance will also draw property owners’ attention to the publicly available property price register produced by the Property Services Regulatory Authority which provides an actual sales price for all properties sold in the State since January 2010. As I have previously advised the House, where the Revenue guidance is used in an honest manner, the property valuation made by a property owner will not be challenged by Revenue in accordance with its normal Customer Service Charter.
79. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance if he has directed, or will consider requesting, National Asset Management Agency to adjust relevant lease terms to reflect current market values for properties in which Departments or State agencies are leasees. [10777/13]
View answer80. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance if he has directed or will consider requesting the National Asset Management Agency to remove upward only rent review clauses from relevant leases in which Departments or State agencies are leasees. [10778/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 79 and 80 together.
As the deputy is aware NAMA has acquired loans from the five participating institutions and is not the owner/operator of properties. The Agency’s role is that of a secured lender.
Properties securing NAMA’s loans continue to be owned and managed by their existing owners or, in the case of enforcement, on their behalf by the duly appointed receiver/administrator. NAMA is not party to and has no legal role in relation to contracts between property owners/appointed insolvency practitioners and third parties.
On the issue of rent abatements, NAMA has published very clear Guidelines, available on www.nama.ie , for tenants seeking a rent reduction from a NAMA debtor or receiver. It is important to emphasise that applications for rent abatements may be made in situations where tenants of NAMA debtors can demonstrate that the rents payable under their current leases are in excess of current market levels and, as a result, that the viability of their businesses is threatened. In such circumstances, tenants may seek NAMA’s approval for rent reductions. The Guidance Note is intended to support small businesses around the country that are struggling because of the current economic environment. By end-December 2012, the Agency had approved 212 applications for rent abatement with an aggregate annual value of €13.5 million. A further 56 applications were being reviewed. Only 8 of the 276 applications received to that data had been refused. This equates to a 97% approval rate by NAMA.
81. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance if consideration has been given to transfer from the National Asset Management Agency to the State properties in which Departments or State agencies are leasees. [10779/13]
View answerAs the deputy is aware NAMA has acquired loans from the five participating institutions and is not the owner of properties. The Agency’s role is that of a secured lender. Properties securing NAMA’s loans continue to be owned and managed by their existing owners or, in the case of enforcement, on their behalf by the duly appointed receiver/administrator. The scenario referenced by the Deputy does not arise therefore. The Deputy is also aware that NAMA’s mandate to achieve the best possible return for the taxpayer from the management and sale of its acquired bank assets and that the NAMA Board has a mandate to independently frame its decisions in this context.
82. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Finance if he will consider, or believe it appropriate, to request the National Asset Management Agency to sell or transfer the current Harcourt Street Garda Station, Dublin, to the ownership of the State. [10780/13]
View answerIt would be inappropriate for me, as Minister for Finance, to comment on any individual property.
83. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Finance the reason whereby vehicle registration tax is established for refund subsequent to the sale of an adapted vehicle to a qualifying disabled driver or passenger; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10840/13]
View answerI understand that the Deputy has clarified that his question related to used vehicles. I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that Section 134(3) of the Finance Act 1992 (as amended) and Statutory Instrument No. 353 of 1994 (Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers (Tax Concessions) Regulations, 1994 (as amended) provide for permanent relief from the payment of specified maximum amounts of VAT and VRT for persons registered under the scheme.
Where a person with a disability purchases a qualifying used vehicle under the scheme, the residual VRT may be repaid to that person subject to the limits set out in the legislation. Any repayment on a used vehicle is confined to the residual VRT that is remaining in the vehicle at the time of purchase and which had not already been repaid to a previous beneficiary. The calculation of the amount of residual VRT is based on the current market price, age, mileage and condition of the vehicle. Where a vehicle has obtained full relief or the prescribed VRT repayment limits have been reached and it is subsequently purchased (as a used vehicle) by another applicant under the scheme, it may still qualify for repayment of excise duty on fuel and for motor tax exemption.
84. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for Finance if VAT is charged on the purchase of a second-hand touring coach where the coach has previously been registered here. [10844/13]
View answer85. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for Finance the reason the operators of coach touring companies here cannot register for VAT, and therefore cannot apply to reclaim VAT in the normal way. [10845/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 84 and 85 together.
The provision of domestic coach touring services is exempt from VAT. This means that a person who provides a coach tour service does not register for VAT and cannot recover VAT incurred on goods and services, such as tyres and mechanic charges, used for the purposes of the person’s tour service. However, there is a VAT Refund Order (S.I. 266 of 2012) under which coach operators who are exempt from VAT may, subject to the conditions in the Order, be entitled to a refund of the VAT paid on touring coaches that are no more than 2 years old and are within specified dimensions. A coach operator, who meets the criteria of the Order, can complete a form VAT 71 that is available on the Revenue Commissioners website.
The question of whether VAT will be charged on the supply of an Irish-registered second-hand touring coach depends on whether the seller is registered for VAT or not. However, secondhand coach sellers are generally exempt from VAT and in such case VAT would not be charged on the resale of a coach.
