Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 15 May 2014
74. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if he will provide in tabular form the tax expenditure associated with the tax relief on donations to charitable and other approved bodies in each year from 2008 to 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22057/14]
View answerSection 848A of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA) provides for a scheme of tax relief on donations to approved bodies. The list of approved bodies, which includes eligible charities, bodies approved for education in the arts and eligible primary, secondary and third level institutions, is available on the Revenue website (www.revenue.ie). For donations made pre-2013, the precise arrangements for allowing tax relief on donations varied depending on whether the donor was a PAYE-only taxpayer, a chargeable person subject to self-assessment or a company. For a PAYE-only donor, the relief was given on a "grossed up" basis to the eligible charity or approved body, rather than by way of a separate claim to tax relief by the donor. The claim for refund was made by the eligible charity or approved body in respect of the PAYE-only donor. In the case of a self-assessed donor, that individual claimed the relief and there was no grossing up arrangement. In the case of a company, it would claim a deduction for the donation as if it were a trading expense. For donations made after 1 January 2013, relief for PAYE-only and self-assessed taxpayers is payable to the charity at a blended rate of 31%. The level of tax relief on donations to charities and other approved bodies is as shown in the following table. The figures for 2012 and 2013 are available only at the current time in respect of PAYE-only donors.
|
Year |
Estimated Cost €m |
|
2008 |
52 |
|
2009 |
54 |
|
2010 |
51 |
|
2011 |
47 |
|
2012 |
25 (PAYE-only donors) |
|
2013 |
24 (PAYE-only donors) |
