Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 July 2022
345. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to a pre-Budget 2023 submission from an organisation (details supplied) asking that an 6% annual vacant property tax is imposed on vacant and derelict properties in Budget 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40074/22]
View answerIn advance of the Budget, as Minister for Finance I receive a large number of pre-budget submissions on a wide range of issues.
These can range from highly detailed and developed proposals for specific changes to existing taxes, reliefs, exemptions and allowances to more straightforward requests, for example, to increase the single person tax credit. Many submissions contain proposals across a range of taxes and allowances that are of particular relevance to the sector in which the person or representative organisation operates. Some are from individuals describing their personal circumstances to place their proposals in context.
The Deputy will be aware that many representative organisations publish their pre-budget submissions on their websites and see it as part of their communication strategy with their members. The vast majority of these pre-budget submissions are sent electronically to my office in the Department of Finance and this is the preferred method of receipt.
My office had not received the Hardware Association Ireland budget submission when this PQ was put down. Nonetheless, its contents will be considered in the context of the forthcoming Budget.
Addressing vacancy and dereliction, and maximising the use of the existing housing stock, is a priority objective of the Government. Housing for All outlines a suite of measures aimed at addressing vacancy in a coordinated, robust manner, and specifically includes an action for the Department of Finance to collect data on vacancy with a view to introducing a vacant property tax.
Provisions included in the Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Act 2021 enabled Revenue to collect certain information on vacant properties in the Local Property Tax return forms submitted by residential property owners in respect of the new LPT valuation period 2022-2025. This information included whether the properties were unoccupied at 1 November 2021, the reason why and whether they (the properties) had been vacant for 12 months or more. Vacancy data on LPT returns has not been verified by Revenue and was collected for informational purposes only. It should be noted that LPT applies only to habitable residential properties, and is not applied in respect of derelict or properties no longer in use, or suitable for use, as a dwelling. A preliminary analysis of this data was published by Revenue on 6 July 2022, and is available at:
www.revenue.ie/en/corporate/information-about-revenue/statistics/local-property-tax/lpt-stats-2022/index.aspx.
I consider that the primary objective of a vacant property tax would be to increase the supply of homes for rent or purchase to meet demand rather than increasing tax revenues. The Revenue analysis provides a basis for my Department to assess the merits and impact of introducing a Vacant Residential Property Tax, and how best such a tax might be designed. This work has already commenced and I intend to bring forward proposals on a targeted measure that achieves an appropriate balance between incentivising owners of vacant habitable residential properties to bring their properties back into use, and ensuring any such tax does not arbitrarily or excessively penalise home-owners in a discriminatory way.
