Olwyn Enright
Ceist:124 Ms Enright asked the Minister for Finance the tax status of payments made which have been deemed corrupt by the Flood inquiry. [21317/02]
Written Answers. - Tax Code.
The tax status of these payments depends on the circumstances of the payment. If the payment was in the nature of income, the payment would be subject to income tax. If the payment was a gift which falls within the definition of a taxable gift in capital taxation law, tax under that heading would be payable. Whether a payment is considered to be corrupt, as such, is of little or no importance in tax law. Section 58 of the Taxes Consolidation Act, 1997, provides for taxation of profits or gains which have arisen from an unlawful or unknown source or activity. All of the payments referred to in the Flood tribunal report are the subject of continuing tax inquiries in the investigation branch of the Revenue Commissioners.