I understand that the Deputy is referring to a proposed extension to the existing exemption of certain income from long-term leasing of farm land to include rent received by a lessor in respect of a residential property.
Section 664 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides for the exemption of certain income from leasing of farm land, where the land is let under a qualifying lease, by a qualifying lessor, to a qualifying lessee.
A qualifying lease must have a minimum definite term of five years or more to qualify for the relief. Following Finance Act 2014, a qualifying lessor is exempt from income tax on progressively increasing amounts linked to lease duration as follows:
For leases entered into:
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Between 1 Jan 2007 and 31 Dec 2014
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On or after 1 Jan 2015
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Lease term
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€
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€
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5yrs or more (but less than 7yrs)
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12,000
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18,000
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7yrs or more (but less than 10yrs)
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15,000
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22,500
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10yrs or more (but less than 15yrs)
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20,000
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30,000
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15yrs or more
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N/A
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40,000
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For the purposes of the relief, the definition of “farm land” includes a building “other than a building or part of a building used as a dwelling".
This relief was designed to encourage longer term leases of farm land in recognition of the advantages of long-term leasing over the short-term conacre system. The 2014 Agritaxation Review recognised the key role of long-term leases in assisting with the mobility and productive use of land, and suggested a number of enhancements to the relief which were implemented in Finance Act 2014.
As the extension proposed by the Deputy would be outside the targeted policy objective of the relief, I do not propose to make such a change to the measure at this time.