Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Question 269: To ask the Minister for Finance the position regarding tax payable when a person donates land to a registered charity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33425/09]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the taxation treatment applying to donations of land to a charity is as follows.

Section 611 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides relief from Capital Gains Tax (CGT) involving the donation of an asset by a taxpayer to a charity. The donation must be a bone fide donation and not a commercial transaction at arm's length. In such circumstances, the transaction is treated as giving rise to neither a gain nor a loss for CGT purposes.

Section 82 of the Stamp Duties Consolidation Act 1999 provides for relief from stamp duty on the conveyance, transfer or lease of land made, or agreed to be made, for charitable purposes to a body of persons established for charitable purposes only or to the trustees of a trust so established.

Section 76 of the Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) Consolidation Act 2003 provides that a gift which is taken for charitable purposes is exempt from CAT to the extent that it has been or will be applied for such purposes.

I am further advised by Revenue that income tax relief for donations to charities under Section 848A of the TCA 1997 only applies where the donation takes the form of money or designated securities; it does not apply to a donation of land.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Question 270: To ask the Minister for Finance the position regarding farmers receiving VAT back on the cost of installing wind turbines on their farms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33442/09]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the question of whether farmers are entitled to claim credit for, or a repayment of, VAT charged to them on the installation of wind turbines on their farms depends on whether or not the farmer is registered for VAT.

Farmers who are registered for VAT are accountable persons for VAT in respect of all their taxable activities, whether those activities consist solely of farming or both farming and other activities such as the generation of electricity for provision to the national grid. As accountable persons for VAT, they would be entitled to claim input credit for VAT charged on the installation of a wind turbine for use in their taxable activities.

In so far as farmers who are not registered for VAT are concerned, they are not in the normal course entitled to credit for, or repayment of, VAT incurred by them on their business inputs. However, farmers not registered for VAT are entitled to a flat-rate addition of 5.2% on supplies of livestock to a VAT registered person in the state subject to the farmer issuing a flat-rate invoice in the appropriate form. In addition, the Value-Added Tax (Refund of Tax) (No 25) Order, 1993 does provide for refunds to unregistered farmers for tax borne on the "construction, extension, alteration or reconstruction of any building or structure which is designed for use solely or mainly for the purposes of a farming business". However, while the installation of a wind turbine may be the construction of a structure, such a structure is not "designed for use solely or mainly for the purposes of a farming business". It is designed rather to generate electricity for wherever required. Consequently, the installation of wind turbines does not come within the scope of the refund order.