Tax Yield

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 July 2014

Tuesday, 15 July 2014

Questions (216)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

216. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance to set out the partial and full year revenue that would be raised for the Exchequer by the introduction of a new 1% wealth tax on net assets in excess of €1 million, excluding qualified provisions such as working farmland, the first 20% of a family home, capital sums in pension funds, business assets, applying to global assets for those domiciled or ordinarily resident in the State and to domestic assets for those resident in the State for tax purposes. [31235/14]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

In order to estimate the potential revenue from a wealth tax, it would first be necessary to identify the wealth held by individuals.

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that they currently have no statistical basis for compiling estimates in relation to a potential wealth tax. Although an individual's assets and liabilities are declared to the Revenue in a number of specific circumstances (for example, after a death), this information is not a complete measure of financial assets in the State, nor is it recorded in a manner that would allow analysis of the implications of an overarching wealth based tax.

It is therefore not possible to provide the information requested by the Deputy.