Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 December 2014
4. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance his plans to introduce changes to the pay and file arrangements for 2015, particularly in respect of filing dates; his views on the need to give certainty as soon as possible for professional advisers and self-employed persons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46376/14]
View answerThe purpose of this question is to seek clarity on the Minister's intentions regarding the pay and file arrangements.
I understand the issue affects up to 600,000 self-employed persons and small businesses. Last year the Minister rowed back on plans to change the pay and file return date for 2014, although he signalled his intention to bring it forward. I am seeking clarity on his intentions and if it is still his plan to change the date.
The Deputy may recall that following a consultation process on changes proposed to the pay and file dates, I decided not to introduce any change to that regime for 2014. However, given the success of the forecasting process for budget 2014 and the concerns expressed by many stakeholders about the potential disruption that could be caused by such a change, I have decided to leave the dates unchanged for 2015 also.
I thank the Minister for clarifying the issue, as it is important that small businesses and self-employed persons have certainty for the next 12 months. They will welcome the news that the pay and file date will not change for 2015. That leads me to the next question of whether it is still the Minister's intention to change the pay and file date in the future. We do not want to have a constant threat hanging over the sector, which is vital to the economy, that the pay and file date may change. The press release issued last year indicated that there would be no change in 2014, but it made clear that the Minister's intention was still to bring forward the date. The Minister has now rolled on the process for another year and indicated that this will not happen in 2015. Is it still his underlying intention to change the date, as it is important for us to have clarity in that regard?
The purpose of the proposed change was purely pragmatic; it was to ensure budget estimates could be forecasted accurately. Once the budget date was moved from the first week of December to the middle of October, it gave rise to a difficulty in forecasting. In 2014 the departmental forecasts have been very accurate and this remains true for 2015. There were no data to predict the November figure, but, as published yesterday, the profile was exceeded by approximately €38 million. When we are considering a sum of €6.2 billion, coming within €38 million of the amount brought in is indicative of very accurate forecasting. I do not now see the necessity, for budgetary reasons, to bring the dates forward. I do not expect any change in the life of this Parliament. What future Ministers will decide will be up to them.
I thank the Minister for providing clarity. The experience in the past 12 months or so bears out the point that we and many others raised at the time that the income stream from self-employed returns was in the region of €1 billion. Even if the estimate was out by 15%, the difference would be €150 million. In the overall context, such a sum would be somewhat immaterial and not have justified the massive inconvenience that would have been caused by changing the pay and file arrangements. There would have been cash-flow issues for businesses and consequences for professional advisers, who are responsible for putting together and filing returns. It would have brought the process back to the summer season and August, the normal time for examinations and study leave, as well as holidays and so forth. As that would have caused problems, I am glad that the Minister has committed to not making a change in the lifetime of the Government. It is a welcome clarification and the sector will appreciate it. As the Minister indicated, it will be a matter for future Ministers to decide on future policy.
