Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)

We wish them well and welcome our visitors to Dublin. I thank Senator O'Loughlin for her question and the opportunity to discuss the commercial rates position regarding home-based childminders, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy James Browne.

Tailte Éireann is an independent Government agency under the aegis of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Tailte Éireann provides a property registration system, a property valuation service, and national mapping and surveying infrastructure for the State. Tailte Éireann is independent in the exercise of its valuation functions under the Valuation Act 2001, as amended, and the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has no function in decisions in this regard.

Tailte Éireann has overall responsibility, under the Act, for the maintenance of all valuation lists used by local authorities in the calculation of rates liability. This maintenance is carried out under the statutory revision process. Existing rateable properties may have their valuations revised, and new properties may have their valuations entered on or excluded from the valuation list for the first time. Under the Act, all property is rateable unless it falls into one of the exempt categories listed in Schedule 4 of the Act. There is a very specific range of exemptions that can be applied. Tailte Éireann has no discretionary latitude to grant exemptions not covered by Schedule 4.

Paragraph 22 of Schedule 4 of the Act, which was inserted by the Valuation (Amendment) Act 2015, refers specifically to early childhood care and education facilities, and provides an exemption for, "Any land, building or part of a building used exclusively for the provision of early childhood care and education, and occupied by a body which is not established and the affairs of which are not conducted for the purpose of making a private profit."Therefore, while the Act provides that early childhood care and education facilities that are operated on a not-for-profit basis are exempt from rates, it does not provide a general exemption from rates for all childcare or childminding facilities operating on a for-profit basis. To avoid ambiguity, if an early childhood care and education facility is operated on a for-profit basis, then it does not fulfil the criteria for exemption under paragraph 22.

In terms of childminding in the home, section 3 of the Act defines a domestic premises as any premises used as a dwelling which is neither a mixed premises nor an apart-hotel. If the property is used partly as a dwelling to a significant extent and partly for another purpose, it may be a mixed premises, as defined in the Act, and consequently may not qualify for the domestic premises exemption in accordance with Schedule 4(6) of the Act.

As a matter of course, Tailte Éireann examines all properties on their individual merits by reference to the relevant statutory provisions governing the operation of the Act and case law arising from the independent Valuation Tribunal and higher courts. Applications to Tailte Éireann to consider the valuation of a property are normally submitted by the local authority in whose rating authority area the property is situated. Where a property is considered rateable, in accordance with the provisions of the Act and relevant case law, Tailte Éireann will issue a proposed valuation certificate. If the property is considered not rateable, Tailte Éireann will issue a proposed notice.

If an occupier is dissatisfied with any aspect of the proposed valuation certificate or proposed notice, they may make representations in writing, free of charge, to Tailte Éireann within 40 days of the issue of the certificate or notice. Following consideration of any representations received, a final valuation certificate or final notice is issued to the ratepayer or occupier. Following completion of this process, the property is either entered on or excluded from the valuation list of the relevant local authority. If an occupier is still dissatisfied, there is a right of appeal to the independent Valuation Tribunal within 28 days from the date of issue of the valuation certificate or notice. The Valuation Tribunal is an independent body set up to hear appeals against Tailte Éireann valuation assessments.

Under Irish law, there is a distinct separation of function between the valuation of rateable properties and the setting and collection of commercial rates. The levying and collection of rates are matters for each individual local authority. The amount of rates liable on a property is determined by multiplying the valuation of the property set by Tailte Éireann by the annual rate on valuation, ARV, set by the local authority. The ARV is decided by the elected members of each local authority in the annual budget. Its determination is a reserved function of a local authority. Tailte Éireann has no function in that regard.