Michael Lowry (Tipperary North, Independent)
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195. To ask the Minister for Finance for clarification on recent changes in budget 2016 on entrepreneurs' retirement relief (details supplied). [42494/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The question and the details supplied indicate some confusion as between CGT retirement relief, which has been in place for some time, and a newly revised CGT entrepreneur relief. These reliefs are separate and distinct.

Retirement relief is available to business owners over the age of 55, and allows them to dispose of business assets free from CGT within limits. The operation of CGT retirement relief differs as between persons aged 55 to 65 and persons aged 66 and over. For individuals aged 55-65, the relief applies to the disposal of assets valued up to €750,000 where the assets are transferred outside the family.  Where the disposal is made to a child or favourite niece/nephew, there is no monetary limit to the relief. For individuals aged 66 years and over disposing of business or farm assets outside the family the relief applies to assets valued up to €500,000. For individuals aged 66 years and over disposing of business or farm assets to a child or nephew/niece who has worked full time in the business/on the farm for the previous five years, the relief can be claimed up to a consideration or value limit of €3 million. No changes to these limits or other conditions of CGT retirement relief were introduced in Budget 2016 or Finance Bill 2015.

As part of Budget 2016 I announced the introduction of a revised CGT entrepreneur relief, which will allow for a reduced 20% rate of CGT  on the disposal of qualifying business assets up to a lifetime limit of €1 million of qualifying gains with effect from 1 January 2016. There is no condition relating to the age of the entrepreneur. The relief is available to farmers in respect of the disposal of assets used in the farm business, subject to meeting the conditions of the relief. The legislative provisions giving effect to the CGT entrepreneur relief are included in section 35 of Finance Bill 2015, as passed by Dáil Éireann. This relief for entrepreneurs does not replace retirement relief, which continues to operate as before.