Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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84. To ask the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 92 of 5 March 2015, if the investigation into the tax affairs of medical consultants has been concluded; the lessons that have been learned for tax compliance generally, from the investigation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16173/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the main focus of their compliance interventions has been the tax issues arising from the incorporation of medical consultants' businesses.  The tax risks identified include:

- the purported disposal of goodwill by medical consultants to their controlled companies;

- cross-charges being made between medical consultants and their controlled companies that lack any commercial basis;

- the claiming of personal expenses against professional income;

- insufficient or no supporting documentation to support large expenses claimed as tax deductions;

- excessive/incorrect tax deductions claimed in relation to salaries/pensions of spouses and children;

- the deferring of professional income to later tax periods thus delaying taxation.

The medical consultant's project is still ongoing. I am informed by Revenue that its approach to this project uses its well developed approach to testing the compliance of a sector on a district/regional basis, evaluating the preliminary results and then deciding whether to roll the project out nationally. Revenue also wrote to the representative bodies at an early stage of the project highlighting its concerns about certain practices and trends. 

I am confident that Revenue will continue to follow through on this project and will also evaluate the project and use the insights gained to enhance compliance generally.