Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Finance if he will confirm that the high earners restriction of specified tax reliefs still applied to charitable donations; if, following his statement on budget day, he will outline specifically the proposals he wants the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform to consider on philanthropic donations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1921/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Following a public consultation on proposed changes to the scheme of tax relief for donations to approved bodies, I announced the following changes in the recent Budget:

i. Donations from all individual donors under the scheme will be treated in the same manner, with the tax relief in all cases being repaid to the charity.

ii. A blended rate of relief of 31% will apply to all taxpayers regardless of their marginal tax rate. All donations will be grossed up as is currently done for donations from individuals within the PAYE collection system.

iii. The charitable donations scheme will be removed from the scope of the high earners’ restriction in recognition of the fact that donors will no longer benefit from the tax relief associated with their donations.

iv. An annual donation limit of €1 million per individual, for which a refund of income tax can be claimed by approved bodies.

Full details of the changes will be contained in the upcoming Finance Bill.

In relation to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, I will be asking the Committee to consider the suggestions put forward in "Extending the Immigrant Investor Scheme: A Proposal".