Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 February 2022
295. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a single parent who is living with a partner who is unemployed is unable to claim tax credits for their child, even in cases in which they are supporting them alone (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5064/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI assume that the Deputy’s the question relates to the qualifying criteria which must be met in order for a claimant to receive the Single Person Child Carer Tax Credit (SPCCC).
I am advised by Revenue that section 462B of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA 1997) provides that the SPCCC will be available to a single person who has a “qualifying child” resident with him or her for the whole or greater part of the year of assessment. The credit is granted in the first instance to the primary claimant who may, if he or she so wishes, relinquish it for the year of assessment to a secondary claimant.
A single person, for the purposes of the SPCCC, is an individual who is not:
jointly assessed to tax as a married person or civil partner;
living with his or her spouse or civil partner; or
cohabiting with a partner.
A qualifying child includes a child born in the tax year, a child who was under the age of 18 at the start of the tax year, or a child who was over the age of 18 at the start of the tax year if he or she is either in full-time education or is permanently incapacitated by reason of mental or physical infirmity from maintaining themselves (having become so incapacitated before reaching the age of 21 or whilst in full-time education).
Further information on the SPCCC is available in Tax and Duty Manual Part 15-01-41 which can be found at the following link: www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-15/15-01-41.pdf.
Where an individual is cohabiting with a partner, he or she will not therefore be entitled to the SPCCC. The Revenue office which deals with the individual’s tax affairs will be able to assist in determining the full range of credits and reliefs which he or she may be entitled to claim, based on their personal circumstances. Contact details for Revenue offices can also be found on the Revenue website at this link: www.revenue.ie/en/contact-us/index.aspx.
The arrangements and associated legislation for the purposes of payments or allowances under the remit of the Department of Social Protection in relation to married couples, civil partners and cohabiting couples are a matter for the Minister for Social Protection and her Department.
Finally, I might take this opportunity to make a general point in relation to the differences in the tax treatment for married couples or civil partners compared to a couple who is cohabiting. In situations where a couple is cohabiting, rather than married or in a civil partnership, each partner is treated for the purposes of income tax as a separate and unconnected individual. Because they are treated separately for tax purposes, credits, tax bands and reliefs cannot be transferred from one partner to the other.
The basis for the current tax treatment of married couples derives from the Supreme Court decision in Murphy vs. Attorney General (1980). This decision was based on Article 41.3.1 of the Constitution where the State pledges to protect the institution of marriage. The decision held that it was contrary to the Constitution for a married couple, both of whom are working, to pay more tax than two single people living together and having the same income.
To the extent that there are differences in the tax treatment of the different categories of couples, such differences arise from the objective of dealing with different types of circumstances while at the same time respecting the constitutional requirements to protect the institution of marriage. Cohabitants do not have the same legal rights and obligations as a married couple or couple in a civil partnership which is why they are not accorded similar tax treatment to couples who have a civil status that is recognised in law. Any change in the tax treatment of cohabiting couples can only be addressed in the broader context of future social and legal policy development in relation to such couples.
