Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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108. To ask the Minister for Finance how he can assist persons who are unable to avail of the home renovation incentive scheme due to builders not signing off on the documentation needed for the Revenue Commissioners to allow persons to claim tax relief on improvement works carried out on their homes. [6575/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The Home Renovation Incentive (HRI) came into operation on 25 October 2013 and will run until 31 December 2016. The incentive provides tax relief for homeowners by way of a tax credit at 13.5% of qualifying expenditure incurred on repair, renovation or improvement work carried out on a principal private residence, or by landlords on a rental property. Qualifying expenditure is that which is subject to the 13.5% VAT rate.  The work must cost a minimum of €4,405 (exclusive of VAT) at which level it would attract a credit of €595.  Where the cost of the work exceeds €30,000 (exclusive of VAT) a maximum credit of €4,050 will apply. The credit is payable over the two years following the year in which the work is carried out.  

Homeowners must be Local Property Tax compliant on all properties they own in order to qualify under the Incentive, while building contractors must be tax compliant in order to carry out works. 

Contractors are required to inform Revenue in advance of details of works to be carried out and are also required to notify Revenue in relation to any payments received in respect of the works. The homeowner/landlord is able to check that the contractor is a qualifying contractor for the purposes of the Incentive and if the proposed works have been registered through Revenue's electronic systems, and are able to claim the relief through those same systems.  The homeowner/landlord will also be provided with the unique reference number for the work when checking the Home Renovation Incentive online system.

The confirmation in relation to the contractor and unique reference number for the work will be available for the homeowner/landlord to view at any time through the Home Renovation Incentive online system. It is the responsibility of the homeowner/landlord to check the online system to confirm that the contractor is a qualifying contractor. The homeowner/landlord can also check to confirm all the information has been notified before making the final payment.

The Incentive is designed in such a way that if work is not notified to the Home Renovation Incentive online system, the homeowner/landlord will not be able to claim a tax credit in respect of payments for the work.