Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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188. To ask the Minister for Finance if the Revenue Commissioners are permitted to withhold tax clearance certificates from a person who has not paid the household charge; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39434/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that sections 1094 and 1095 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 were amended by the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 (as amended) to provide that outstanding Local Property Tax (LPT) Returns and liabilities are taken into account for tax clearance purposes. Section 156 of the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 (as amended) provides that, where the Household Charge for 2012 had not been paid by 1 July 2013, the arrears amount is increased to €200 and is regarded as Local Property Tax. The Commissioners have confirmed that the conditions for tax clearance will not be met where the Household Charge is outstanding. Accordingly a Tax Clearance Certificate may be withheld from a person who has not paid the Household Charge.

In my reply to Question No. 213 (PQ 37951/13) on 18 September 2013, I informed the House that the Commissioners have a significant amount of work to do to match the Local Government Management Agency’s Household Charge Register with their LPT Register in order to identify cases where the 2012 Household Charge is still unpaid and that this work is likely to continue for some time. I also outlined the wide range of options available for paying the €200 arrears. Further information on the payment of Household Charge arrears is available in the LPT “Frequently Asked Questions” section of the Revenue website.