Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 389: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if there is an exemption from the Government charge for non-principal residences for a person who is in the process of selling their home and has had to move out of this home due to a change in personal circumstances and live in rented accommodation until the house is sold. [41388/09]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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The Government has decided to broaden the revenue base of local authorities by introducing a charge on all non-principal private residences. The charge is payable by the owners of private rented accommodation, holiday homes and any other residential property that is not the owner's sole or main residence.

The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009, which sets out the detail of the charge, has a starting position of a universal liability in respect of the charge. It then goes on to exempt certain buildings and owners from this liability, the most important exemption being where a property is occupied by the owner as his or her sole or main residence on the liability date. Where a person does not occupy the property concerned as a sole or main residence and is living instead in rented accommodation, he or she would be liable for the charge unless otherwise exempt. Section 4(2) of the Act provides for an exemption from the charge in a situation where a person is moving home and acquires a second property within the 12 months prior to the liability date in each year, as long as within six months following the liability date, the second property becomes the person's sole or main residence and he or she ceases to be the owner of the first property.