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VAT Rebates

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 6 December 2018

Thursday, 6 December 2018

Questions (82)

Michael McGrath

Question:

82. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the work that has been carried out to date on the scheme for VAT compensation for charities; when the scheme will commence; the persons or bodies that will be eligible to claim a VAT refund; the amount available; the way in which it will operate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51436/18]

View answer

Written answers

A draft Ministerial Order providing for the scheme has been prepared and is currently being reviewed by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel. I expect to sign the Order before the end of the month.

I am advised that the Revenue Commissioners have developed systems to enable charities submit claims and to support processing and payment of claims. The facility to make claims under the scheme will be available on ROS from January 2019. In addition, there has been extensive consultation with Charities Institute Ireland concerning the details of the scheme and the administrative arrangements that will apply, and guidance will be published by Revenue after the Order is signed.

The scheme will take effect from 1 January 2018 but will be paid one year in arrears, so that in 2019, charities will be able to submit claims in respect of the VAT costs incurred in the calendar year 2018. A capped fund of €5 million will be available in 2019 to finance payments under the scheme. Claims can be submitted annually by charities who are registered with Revenue, hold a charitable tax exemption under Section 207 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 and are registered with the Charities Regulatory Authority (CRA). Additionally, they must hold a Tax Clearance Certificate and be in possession of a set of audited accounts for a financial year which ends no earlier than in the calendar year to which the claim relates.

Charities will be entitled to a refund of a proportion of their VAT costs based on the level of non-public funding they receive. For example, where a charity’s gross income for 2018 involves 30% funding from State/EU/international organisations and 70% from privately sourced income, they can claim 70% of their VAT input costs for the year. Where the total amount of claims in a year exceeds the capped amount, charities will be paid on a pro rata basis, i.e. where the total value of claims is double the capped pool amount, each charity will receive 50% of their claim.

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