Peter Burke
Ceist:252. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Finance if a person (details supplied) is entitled to consolidation relief; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15847/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 17 April 2018
Ceisteanna (252)
Freagraí scríofa
I assume the Deputy is referring to the measure introduced in Finance Act 2017 to allow a farmer to claim relief from stamp duty where he or she both sells and purchases land for the purposes of consolidating an existing farm holding. This measure has not yet been commenced as it is still being considered by my Department in the context of EU State Aid requirements. Subject to commencement, the measure will apply to all qualifying transactions that took place on or after 1 January 2018, so farmers who consolidate their holdings on or after 1 January 2018, but prior to the commencement of the relief, will still be eligible.
There are a number of conditions that must be satisfied for the relief to apply. There must be both a sale and a purchase of land within a period of 24 months of each other. Where other qualifying conditions are satisfied, stamp duty is chargeable only to the extent that the value of the land that is purchased exceeds the value of the land that is sold. A reduced rate of 1% is charged on the excess, if any, of the purchase value.
An important condition for the relief is that Teagasc must issue a certificate stating that a sale and purchase (or an exchange of farmland) was made for farm consolidation purposes. This is the certificate that is currently required in relation to the capital gains tax farm consolidation relief. The criteria to be used by Teagasc for this purpose and the information to be supplied to Teagasc are contained in guidelines published by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Following the farm consolidation, a farmer must retain ownership of the farmland for a period of five years and must use the land for farming. Where any part of the land is disposed of before the end of this five-year holding period, the stamp duty relieved can subsequently be recovered by Revenue, or partly recovered as appropriate.
Where stamp duty in excess of 1% has already been paid on the excess of purchase value, eligible farmers may claim a refund from Revenue after the relief is commenced. A refund claim is to be made on a self-assessment basis where the qualifying conditions for the relief are satisfied.