Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I move amendment No. 19:

In page 30, to delete lines 19 to 23 and substitute the following:" " 'fund administrator' means a qualifying fund manager of an approved retirement fund or an approved minimum retirement fund or the PRSA administrator of a vested PRSA (within the meaning of section 790D(1)), as the case may be, (in this definition referred to as the 'fund') the beneficial owner of which is a non-member and the assets of which consist, in whole or in part, of—

(a) assets transferred to the fund by virtue of the exercise by the non-member of a relevant option in relation to the transfer arrangement (in this definition referred to as the ‘first-mentioned transfer'), or
(b) assets transferred to the fund which were previously held in another fund or funds the assets of which originated, in whole or in part, from the first mentioned transfer;",".

As amendments Nos. 19 to 42, inclusive, all relate to subsection (4) of section 17 of the Bill as published, I propose to deal with them together. Section 17(4) amends Chapter 2C of Part 30 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, which provides for the maximum allowable pension fund at retirement for tax purposes - generally referred to as the standard fund threshold or SFT regime. The changes made by section 17(4) are for the purposes of dealing with issues arising in cases involving pension adjustment orders, PAOs, where the SFT regime and PAOs interact. At present, where a chargeable excess arises and a PAO applies, the chargeable excess tax is recovered by the pension scheme administrator solely from the scheme member’s part of the pension benefits and the spouse or partner’s designated share of the pension benefits is unaffected. The changes made by section 17(4) of the Bill provide that, in future, any chargeable excess tax arising will be apportioned having regard to the terms of the PAO, so that both the member and non-member spouse or partner share the tax charge in a more equitable fashion.
I should state that this has proved to be a difficult and complex issue and the amendments required to deal with it in the Bill as published, in the first instance, and the further range of amendments I am now proposing are an indication of that. The amendments reflect further consideration of the provision in the light of feedback and commentary received by the Department of Finance and Revenue since publication. These changes will act to ensure that the provisions operate as intended.
Amendments Nos. 23, 25, 27 to 29, inclusive, 32, 34, 35, 37 and 40 to 42, inclusive, are minor drafting or technical amendments, which we can look at if members wish, to clarify aspects of the provision. Turning to the other more substantive amendments, amendments Nos. 19 to 21 amend a number of definitions used in the provision. The amendments are primarily designed to ensure that the terms "fund administrator", "relevant member", "subsequent administrator" and "transfer arrangement" take account of the dynamic nature of pensions, particularly in the private sector, whereby pension benefits can be readily transferred from one scheme to another. The refined definitions will ensure that the correct scheme and, therefore, the correct scheme administrator is pinpointed for the purposes of administering the new provision as regards the collection and payment of any chargeable excess tax arising on a non-member spouse or partner.
Amendment No. 22 extends new subsection (5) of section 787O to make clear that, where a member of a scheme to which a PAO has been applied takes a transfer value to another scheme, the administrator of the new scheme in calculating the capital value of a benefit crystallisation event at the point of pension drawdown, and in providing information for the purposes of the application by the member for a personal fund threshold, must make those calculations as if the PAO had not been made.
Amendment No. 24 extends new subsection (5A) of section 787Q to provide that the pension scheme administrator of an ex-spouse or partner’s independent scheme, to which the ex-spouse or partner has transferred the designated benefit under the PAO, is entitled to dispose of or appropriate such assets of the scheme as are required to pay the tax due and will be protected against any potential legal action from doing so.
Amendment No. 26 is perhaps the most significant of the amendments being made. As mentioned earlier, the intent of the overall changes being made by section 17(4) is to give a more equitable sharing of any chargeable excess tax arising in the context of PAO cases, as between the scheme member and the non-member spouse or partner. Where the non-member spouse or partner leaves the designated benefit under the PAO as part of the member’s pension until maturity, the apportionment is straightforward. However, where the non-member spouse or partner has taken a transfer value to a separate independent scheme, the apportionment becomes more complicated. This amendment ensures that the non-member’s share of any chargeable excess tax in those circumstances will reflect actual events occurring at the point of transfer rather than notional events at the time the benefit crystallisation event giving rise to the chargeable excess tax arises.
Amendment No. 30 extends new section 787R(2A)(e) to place a limit on the liability of a subsequent administrator for a non-member’s share of any chargeable excess tax so that it does not exceed the value of the assets in the transfer arrangement at the point at which the non-member’s rights under that arrangement are being transferred to another arrangement, or at the point the retirement benefits under the arrangement mature and are drawn down. Amendment No. 31 amends new section 787R(3B) which requires an administrator who apportions chargeable excess tax between the member and the non-member spouse or partner, in circumstances where the non-member has taken a transfer value to a separate independent scheme, to provide a certificate to the administrator of the independent arrangement detailing the amount and basis of calculation of the non-member's share of the chargeable excess tax. The amendment places an onus on the administrator to establish, through inquiries, who is the subsequent administrator and extends the period within which a certificate must be issued from seven to 21 days.
Amendment No. 33 primarily recasts new section 787R(3C) as published in the Bill to break it up into more manageable subparagraphs for ease of the reader. It also places an onus on the administrator of the member’s scheme or the subsequent administrator of the non-member spouse or partner’s independent scheme, depending on the circumstances, to establish, through inquiries, who the fund administrator is, or the administrator of a vested PRSA belonging to the non-member spouse or partner, and extends the period within which a certificate or copy certificate must be issued to the fund administrator from seven to 21 days.
Amendment No. 36 amends new section 787R(6A) inserted by section 17 (4) of the Bill as initiated. Section 787R(6A) provides for the retention of certain records by the administrator, subsequent administrator or fund administrator for a period of six years from specified dates. The amendment clarifies the specified dates for the various parties involved.
Amendment No. 38recasts the amendment made to section 787S(1) of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 in the Bill as initiated to clarify what the administrator of a scheme, who has apportioned chargeable excess tax between a scheme member and a non-member spouse or partner, has to include in the return the administrator has to make to the Collector General of Revenue for the purposes of accounting for chargeable excess tax.

Amendment No. 39 recasts new section 787 S1A inserted in the TCA 1997 by the Bill, as initiated, to ensure there is no doubt as to the responsibility for and the timing of the making of a return required to be made to the Collector General of Revenue for the purposes of accounting for a non-member spouse or partner share of a chargeable excess tax in circumstances where the non-member has taken a transfer value to provide an independent retirement benefit.