Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 May 2024
72. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Finance if, given the urgency of boosting housing supply, he is considering further changes to the residential zoned land tax to accelerate activation of residential zoned land; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22766/24]
View answerThe Residential Zoned Land Tax or RZLT was introduced in Finance Act 2021 and seeks to increase housing supply by encouraging the activation of development on lands which are suitably zoned and appropriately serviced. RZLT, which is an action under Housing for All, aims to bring those lands which have benefitted from investment in services and are capable of being developed forward for housing.
Each local authority in the State is responsible for the preparation of a RZLT map for their functional area. In preparing the draft RZLT maps each local authority determines whether the zoned land is connected or able to connect to the six required categories of services. Any exclusions which would rule the land out of scope were applied. Each local authority then publishes a draft RZLT map identifying the land which meets the requirements of the legislation and which may be liable to the tax.
It is important that affected landowners have sufficient opportunity to engage with the mapping process and that a fair and transparent process is applied when local authorities consider what land should be placed on the RZLT maps. Therefore, as part of Budget 2024, it was decided to extend the liability date of the tax by one year, from February 2024 to February 2025. The purpose of this deferral is to allow for the annual mapping cycle to complete and afford landowners another opportunity to make submissions if their land is included on the maps prepared by local authorities.
The deferral will also provide a further opportunity to landowners whose land appeared on a draft revised final map published on 1 February 2024 to request the rezoning of such land from the local authority in whose functional area the land is situated.
The implementation of the measure may be broken down into two phases; an initial mapping phase to identify land within the scope of the tax, which is being undertaken by local authorities, and the administration of the tax, which is the responsibility of Revenue.
The administration of the tax by Revenue will commence in 2025, with the initial liability date for the tax arising on 1 February 2025 with the first pay and file date following on 23 May 2025.
My Department, in conjunction with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are actively monitoring the implementation of the residential zoned land tax to ensure it meets its objective of activating suitable zoned and serviced land for housing.
