Michael Creed
Ceist:236 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Finance the reason a person (details supplied) in County Cork has been refused a refund of stamp duty under section 112 of the Finance Act, 1994. [11732/98]
Written Answers. - Stamp Duty Relief.
I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that section 112 Finance Act, 1994, introduced a relief in stamp duty which applies to transfers of land by sale or gift and amounts to a reduction of two-thirds in the stamp duty that would otherwise be payable. For the purposes of this relief, a number of conditions must be met on the date of execution of the deed of transfer. One of these conditions is that, in certain circumstances, the transferee must on that date be the holder of a certificate issued by Teagasc, certifying satisfactory attendance at a course of training in either or both agriculture and horticulture, the aggregate duration of which exceeded 180 hours. There are no provisions whereby a person who has not completed the full 180 hours on the date of execution of the deed may benefit from the relief.
As the transferee in this particular case had not completed the full 180 hours attendance on 1 June 1997 the date of execution of the deed, he is not entitled to the reduced rate of stamp duty and, accordingly, a refund does not arise. The solicitors acting in this case were notified of the position on 16 March 1998.