Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

64. To ask the Minister for Finance if he has explored the area of tax incentives for the renovation of old homesteads and abandoned dwellings in rural areas; and if there are estimates concerning the costs of such incentives. [27765/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

In the recent past, under the Rural Renewal and Town Renewal Schemes, tax relief in the form of Owner/Occupier relief and Section 23 rented residential relief was made available for expenditure incurred on the construction, conversion and refurbishment of residential property. The Town Renewal Scheme applied in certain designated towns while the Rural Renewal Scheme applied in the counties of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford, Roscommon and Sligo. Owner/Occupier relief was given as a deduction from total income at a rate of 5% per annum over 10 years in the case of construction expenditure and 10% per annum over 10 years in the case of conversion or refurbishment expenditure.Section 23 relief was given as a deduction from the landlord's rental income. The latest date for incurring expenditure which could qualify for relief under these schemes was 31 July 2008.  However, an earlier termination date could have applied where certain conditions were not met.

In addition to the above schemes, the Countrywide Refurbishment Scheme provided for tax relief in the form of a deduction from the landlord's rental income of expenditure incurred on the refurbishment of a rented residential property.  The expenditure was written off over 7 years at a rate of 15% per annum. This scheme applied throughout the country. The termination date for incurring expenditure which could qualify for relief under this scheme was 31 July 2008.

The latest information available on the cost of the Town Renewal and Rural Renewal schemes is a provisional cost for 2013 as follows:

This information is based on tax returns of self-assessed individuals and companies. The estimated relief claimed has assumed tax forgone at the 41% rate for 2013 in the case of individuals and 12.5% in the case of companies. The figures shown correspond to the maximum Exchequer cost in terms of Income Tax and Corporation Tax. There is no statistical information on the Countrywide Refurbishment scheme.

However, as the Deputy will be aware, the Home Renovation Incentive (HRI) provides a tax relief by way of an income tax credit on repair, renovation or improvements works on principal private residences or rental properties by tax compliant contractors. HRI came into operation on 25 October 2013, with rental properties being brought within it from 15 October 2014. It will run until 31 December 2015. A qualifying residence under HRI includes a residential premises which has previously been occupied as a residence and which is acquired by an individual for the purposes of occupation by the individual as his or her principal private residence. The premises must be so occupied upon completion of the qualifying work.  HRI would, therefore, be available towards the renovation of the type of properties referred to by the Deputy.

Data relating to the HRI is available in the "Tax Expenditures" section of the statistics page of the Revenue website atwww.revenue.ie/en/about/statistics/hri-stats.pdf. These statistics will be updated in due course.