Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This section relates to a new annual reporting requirement for convertible securities, restricted shares and forfeitable shares given to a director, employee or other person that will now be required in electronic form in a format provided by the Revenue Commissioners.

The general share award reporting obligations have also been extended to include cash equivalent to shares or shares granted at a discount. I welcome this in the hope that it will provide greater transparency and oversight around the ownership of shares and will place Revenue in a stronger position, it is hoped, with regard to its ability to tax such ownership. Will there be any interaction between Revenue and the new register of beneficial ownership, RBO, which is controlled by the Companies Registration Office, CRO? The RBO is designed to create a register of the beneficial ownership of company shares. However, trustees can serve as beneficial owners when in reality they are just intermediaries acting on behalf of the ultimate beneficial owner. This new reporting requirement has the potential to increase transparency around company ownership provided there is some kind of exchange of information between Revenue and the CRO. Will the Minister outline the kind of exchange of information there will be? If there will not be, will he explain why?