Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

With the discretion of the Chair, I will outline the section. If there are any outstanding issues, I will endeavour to address them. In consultation with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the Minister for Finance is providing relief from stamp duty in respect of certain long leases of farm land. It is one of the recommendations of the agri taxation review intended to encourage more productive use of farm land.

The section inserts a new section, section 81(D), in the Stamp Duties Consolation Act 1999. The section provides, subject to certain conditions, for relief from stamp duty to encourage the long-term leasing of land to active farmers. The conditions include that the term of a lease must be for a period of not less than six years and not exceeding 35 years. The land must be used exclusively for farming carried on by the leasee. The leasee must be a farmer who has a farming qualification or a farmer who spends not less than 50% of his or her normal working time farming. The amendment allows the leasee farmer a period of up to four years to acquire a farming qualification.

The section also provides for the clawback of the relief if the conditions on which the relief is granted are not satisfied, thus ensuring that only genuine farmers benefit from the relief. The section also provides that in the event that the conditions of the relief are not fulfilled for the first six years of a lease, the stamp duty that would have been chargeable on the grant of the lease becomes payable with interest. Failure to fulfil the conditions of the relief due to the death or incapacity of the leasee or by reason of mental or physical infirmity to continue to carry on farming will not give rise to the assessment.

I am informed that issues have been raised about this provision from a State aid viewpoint as the proposed relief is confined to farm land. Accordingly, this amendment provides that the section will be subject to a commencement order, pending the resolution of any State aid issues.