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9 1996

FINANCE ACT, 1996

Chapter VI

Income Tax and Corporation Tax: Reliefs for Renewal and Improvement of Residential Accommodation on Certain Islands

Interpretation ( Chapter VI ).

65. —(1) In this Chapter—

certificate of reasonable cost” means a certificate granted by the Minister for the Environment for the purposes of section 66 , 67 , 68 or 69 , as the case may be, stating that the amount specified in the certificate in relation to the cost of construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the house to which the certificate relates appears to the Minister at the time of the granting of the certificate and on the basis of the information available to the Minister at that time to be reasonable, and section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , shall, with any necessary modifications, apply to a certificate of reasonable cost as if it were a certificate of reasonable value;

certificate of reasonable value” has the meaning assigned to it by section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 ;

designated island” means any of the following islands, that is to say—

(a) in the administrative county of Cork, the islands of Bere, Clear, Dursey, Hare, Long, Sherkin and Whiddy,

(b) in the administrative county of Donegal, the islands of Arranmore, Inishbofin, Inishfree and Tory,

(c) in the administrative county of Galway, the islands of Inisbofin, Inisheer, Inishmaan and Inishmore,

(d) in the administrative county of Limerick, the island of Foynes,

(e) in the administrative county of Mayo, the islands of Claggan, Clare, Inishbiggle, Inishcottle, Inishlyre and Inishturk, and

(f) in the administrative county of Sligo, the island of Coney;

house” includes any building or part of a building used or suitable for use as a dwelling and any out-office, yard, garden or other land appurtenant thereto or usually enjoyed therewith;

lease”, “lessee”, “lessor”, “premium” and “rent” have the meanings respectively assigned to them by Chapter VI of Part IV of the Income Tax Act, 1967 ;

market value”, in relation to a building or house, means the price which the unencumbered fee simple of the building or house would fetch if sold in the open market in such manner and subject to such conditions as might reasonably be calculated to obtain for the vendor the best price for the building or house:

Provided that the said price shall be reduced by the part of that price which would be attributable to the acquisition of, or of rights in or over, the land on which the building or house is constructed;

qualifying period” means the period commencing on the 1st day of August, 1996, and ending on the 31st day of July, 1999;

total floor area” means the total floor area of a house measured in the manner referred to in section 4 (2) (b) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 .

(2) For the purposes of this Chapter references therein to the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, any premises shall be construed as including references to the development of the land on which the premises is situated or which is used in the provision of gardens, grounds, access or amenities in relation to the premises and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, as including, in particular—

(a) demolition or dismantling of any building on the land,

(b) site clearance, earth moving, excavation, tunnelling and boring, laying of foundations, erection of scaffolding, site restoration, landscaping and the provision of roadways and other access works,

(c) walls, power-supply, drainage, sanitation and water supply, and

(d) the construction of any outhouses or other buildings or structures for use by the occupants of the premises or for use in the provision of amenities for the occupants.

Deduction for certain expenditure on construction of rented residential accommodation.

66. —(1) In this section—

qualifying lease”, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 70 (1), a lease of the house the duration of which is not less than 12 months and the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are, or fall to be treated as, amounts by way of rent for the purposes of Chapter VI of Part IV of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a) together with a payment by way of a premium which does not exceed 10 per cent. of the relevant cost of the house;

qualifying premises” means, subject to subsections (2), (3) (a) and (4) of section 70 , a house—

(a) the site of which is on a designated island,

(b) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(c) the total floor area of which—

(i) is not less than 30 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in the case where the house is a separate self-contained flat or maisonette in a building of two or more storeys, or

(ii) is not less than 35 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in any other case,

(d) in respect of which, if it is not a new house (within the meaning of section 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 ) provided for sale, there is in force a certificate of reasonable cost, the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of construction of the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such construction, and

(e) which, without having been used, is first let in its entirety under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (save for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

relevant cost”, in relation to a house, means, subject to subsection (3), an amount equal to the aggregate of—

(a) the expenditure incurred on the acquisition of, or of rights in or over, any land on which the house is constructed, and

(b) the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the house;

relevant period”, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning with the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(2) Where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred expenditure on the construction of a qualifying premises, such person shall be entitled, in computing, for the purposes of subsection (4) of section 81 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the said premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of that expenditure as falls to be treated, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period, and all the provisions of Chapter VI of Part IV of the said Act shall apply as if the said deduction were a deduction authorised by the provisions of subsection (5) of the said section 81:

Provided that, where any premium or other sum which is payable, directly or indirectly, under a qualifying lease, or otherwise under the terms subject to which the lease is granted, to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor, or any part of such premium or sum, is not, or is not treated as, an amount by way of rent for the purposes of the said section 81, the expenditure falling to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period on the construction of the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed, for the purposes of this subsection, to be reduced by the lesser of—

(a) the amount of the said premium or sum or, as the case may be, the said part of such premium or sum, and

(b) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in paragraph (a) the same proportion as the amount of the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the expenditure incurred on the said construction.

(3) Where a qualifying premises forms part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms part of a building which is itself one of a number of buildings in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary—

(a) of the expenditure incurred on the construction of the said building or buildings, and

(b) of the amount which would be the relevant cost in relation to the said building or buildings if the building or buildings, as the case may be, were a single qualifying premises,

for the purposes of determining the expenditure incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises and the relevant cost in relation to the qualifying premises.

(4) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs:

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then the person who, before the occurrence of the event, received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (2) in respect of expenditure incurred on the construction of the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence an amount by way of rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(5) (a) Where the event mentioned in subsection (4) (b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the said house passes shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of expenditure on the construction of the said house equal to the amount which, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, apart from the proviso to subsection (2), the said lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period on the construction of the said house:

Provided that, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed the relevant price paid by such person on the sale.

(b) For the purposes of this subsection and subsection (6), the relevant price paid by a person on the sale of a house shall be the amount which bears to the net price paid by such person on that sale the same proportion as the amount of the expenditure actually incurred on the construction of the house which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the relevant cost in relation to that house.

(6) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), where expenditure is incurred on the construction of a house and before the house is used it is sold, the person who buys the house shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period expenditure on the construction of the house equal to the amount of such expenditure which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period or the relevant price paid by such person on the sale, whichever is the lower:

Provided that, where the house is sold more than once before it is used, the provisions of this subsection shall have effect only in relation to the last of those sales.

(b) Where expenditure is incurred on the construction of a house by a person carrying on a trade or part of a trade which consists, as to the whole or any part thereof, of the construction of buildings with a view to their sale and the house, before it is used, is sold in the course of that trade or, as the case may be, that part of that trade, the person who buys the house shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period expenditure on the construction of the house equal to the relevant price paid by such person on the said sale (hereafter in this paragraph referred to as “the first sale”) and, in relation to any subsequent sale or sales of the house before the house is used, paragraph (a) shall have effect as if the reference to the amount of expenditure which falls to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period were a reference to the said relevant price paid on the first sale.

(7) The provisions of section 70 shall have effect for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Rented residential accommodation: deduction for expenditure on conversion.

67. —(1) In this section—

conversion expenditure” means, subject to subsection (2), expenditure incurred on—

(a) the conversion into a house of a building—

(i) the site of which is on a designated island, and

(ii) which has not been previously in use as a dwelling,

and

(b) the conversion into two or more houses of a building—

(i) the site of which is on a designated island, and

(ii) which, prior to the conversion, had not been in use as a dwelling or had been in use as a single dwelling,

and references in this section and section 70 to “conversion”, “conversion into a house” and “expenditure incurred on conversion” shall be construed accordingly;

qualifying lease”, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 70 (1), a lease of the house the duration of which is not less than 12 months and the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are, or fall to be treated as, amounts by way of rent for the purposes of Chapter VI of Part IV of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a) together with a payment by way of a premium which does not exceed 10 per cent. of the market value of the house at the time the conversion is completed:

Provided that, in the case of a house which is part of a building and which is not saleable apart from the building of which it is a part, the market value of the house at the time the conversion is completed shall, for the purposes of paragraph (b), be taken to be an amount which bears to the market value of the building at that time the same proportion as the total floor area of the house bears to the total floor area of the building;

qualifying premises” means, subject to subsections (2), (3) (b) and (4) of section 70 , a house—

(a) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(b) the total floor area of which—

(i) is not less than 30 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in the case where the house is a separate self-contained flat or maisonette in a building of two or more storeys, or

(ii) is not less than 35 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in any other case,

(c) in respect of which there is in force a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of conversion in relation to the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such conversion, and

(d) which, without having been used subsequent to the incurring of the expenditure on the conversion, is first let in its entirety under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (save for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

relevant period”, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning with the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(2) For the purposes of this section, expenditure incurred on conversion of a building shall be deemed to include expenditure incurred, in the course of the conversion, on either or both the following, that is to say:

(a) the carrying out of works of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, and

(b) the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities,

in relation to the building or any outoffice appurtenant thereto or usually enjoyed therewith, but shall not be deemed to include—

(i) any expenditure in respect of which any person is entitled to a deduction, relief or allowance under any other provision of the Tax Acts, or

(ii) any expenditure attributable to any part (hereafter in this section referred to as a “non-residential unit”) of the building which, upon completion of the conversion, is not a house.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (ii) of subsection (2), where expenditure is attributable to a building in general and not directly to any particular house or non-residential unit comprised in the building upon completion of the conversion, then such an amount of that expenditure shall be deemed to be attributable to a non-residential unit as bears to the whole of that expenditure the same proportion as the total floor area of the non-residential unit bears to the total floor area of the building.

(4) Where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred conversion expenditure in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, such person shall be entitled, in computing, for the purposes of section (4) of section 81 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the said premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of the expenditure as falls to be treated, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period and all the provisions of Chapter VI of Part IV of the said Act shall apply as if the said deduction were a deduction authorised by the provisions of subsection (5) of the said section 81:

Provided that, where any premium or other sum which is payable, directly or indirectly, under a qualifying lease, or otherwise under the terms subject to which the lease is granted, to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor, or any part of such premium or sum, is not, or is not treated as, an amount by way of rent for the purposes of the said section 81, the conversion expenditure falling to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed, for the purposes of this subsection, to be reduced by the lesser of—

(a) the amount of the said premium or sum or, as the case may be, the said part of such premium or sum, and

(b) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in paragraph (a) the same proportion as the amount of the conversion expenditure actually incurred in relation to the qualifying premises which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(5) Where a qualifying premises forms part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms part of a building which is itself one of a number of buildings in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary of the expenditure incurred on the conversion of the said building or buildings for the purposes of determining the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(6) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs:

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then the person who, before the occurrence of the event, received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (4) in respect of conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence an amount by way of rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(7) Where the event mentioned in subsection (6) (b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the said house passes shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of conversion expenditure in relation to the said house equal to the amount of the conversion expenditure which, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, apart from the proviso to subsection (4), the said lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the said house:

Provided that, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed—

(a) the net price paid by such person on the sale, or

(b) in case only a part of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house falls to be treated, under section 70 (5), as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to the said net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house.

(8) Where conversion expenditure is incurred in relation to a house and before the house is used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure it is sold, the person who buys the house shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period conversion expenditure in relation to the house equal to—

(a) the amount of such expenditure which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, or

(b) (i) the net price paid by such person on the sale, or

(ii) in case only a part of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house falls to be treated, under section 70 (5), as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to the said net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the conversion expenditure incurred in relation to the house,

whichever is the lower:

Provided that, where the house is sold more than once before it is used subsequent to the incurring of the conversion expenditure in relation to the house, the provisions of this subsection shall have effect only in relation to the last of those sales.

(9) This section shall not apply in the case of a conversion unless planning permission in respect of the conversion has been granted under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts, 1963 to 1993.

(10) The provisions of section 70 shall have effect for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Rented residential accommodation: deduction for expenditure on refurbishment.

68. —(1) In this section—

qualifying lease”, in relation to a house, means, subject to section 70 (1), a lease of the house the duration of which is not less than 12 months and the consideration for the grant of which consists—

(a) solely of periodic payments all of which are, or fall to be treated as, amounts by way of rent for the purposes of Chapter VI of Part IV of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , or

(b) of payments of the kind mentioned in paragraph (a) together with a payment by way of a premium—

(i) which is payable on or subsequent to the date of the completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates or which, if payable before that date, is so payable by reason of, or otherwise in connection with, the carrying out of the refurbishment, and

(ii) which does not exceed 10 per cent. of the market value of the house on the date of completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates:

Provided that, in the case of a house which is part of a building and which is not saleable apart from the building of which it is a part, the market value of the house on that date shall, for the purposes of paragraph (b), be taken to be an amount which bears to the market value of the building on that date the same proportion as the total floor area of the house bears to the total floor area of the building;

qualifying premises” means, subject to subsections (2), (3) (b) and (4) of section 70 , a house—

(a) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(b) the total floor area of which—

(i) is not less than 30 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in the case where the house is a separate self-contained flat or maisonette in a building of two or more storeys, or

(ii) is not less than 35 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in any other case,

(c) in respect of which there is in force a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of refurbishment in relation to the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the relevant expenditure actually incurred on such refurbishment, and

(d) which, on the date of completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates, is let (or, if it is not let on that date, is, without having been used after that date, first let) in its entirety under a qualifying lease and thereafter throughout the remainder of the relevant period (save for reasonable periods of temporary disuse between the ending of one qualifying lease and the commencement of another such lease) continues to be let under such a lease;

refurbishment”, in relation to a building, means either or both of the following, that is to say:

(a) the carrying out of any works of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, and

(b) the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities,

where the carrying out of such works, or the provision of such facilities, is certified by the Minister for the Environment, in any certificate of reasonable cost granted by that Minister in relation to any house contained in the building, to have been necessary for the purposes of ensuring the suitability as a dwelling of any house in the building and whether or not the number of houses in the building, or the shape or size of any such house, is altered in the course of such refurbishment;

relevant expenditure” means expenditure incurred on the refurbishment of a specified building, other than expenditure attributable to any part (hereafter in this section referred to as a “non-residential unit”) of the building which, upon completion of the refurbishment, is not a house; and, for the purposes of this definition, where expenditure is attributable to the specified building in general (and not directly to any particular house or non-residential unit comprised in the building upon completion of the refurbishment) such an amount of that expenditure shall be deemed to be attributable to a non-residential unit as bears to the whole of that expenditure the same proportion as the total floor area of the non-residential unit bears to the total floor area of the building;

relevant period”, in relation to a qualifying premises, means the period of 10 years beginning with the date of the completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates or, if the premises was not let under a qualifying lease on that date, the period of 10 years beginning with the date of the first such letting after the date of such completion;

specified building” means a building—

(a) the site of which is on a designated island,

(b) in which, prior to the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates, there are one or more houses, and

(c) which, upon completion of that refurbishment, contains (whether in addition to any non-residential unit or not) one or more houses.

(2) Where a person, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred relevant expenditure in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, such person shall be entitled, in computing for the purposes of subsection (4) of section 81 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , the amount of a surplus or deficiency in respect of the rent from the said premises, to a deduction of so much (if any) of the expenditure as falls to be treated, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, as having been incurred by such person in the qualifying period and all the provisions of Chapter VI of Part IV of the said Act shall apply as if the said deduction were a deduction authorised by the provisions of subsection (5) of the said section 81:

Provided that, where any premium or other sum which is payable (directly or indirectly), on or subsequent to the date of the completion of the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates (or which, if payable before that date, is so payable by reason of, or otherwise in connection with, the carrying out of the refurbishment), to or for the benefit of the lessor or to or for the benefit of any person connected with the lessor, or any part of such premium or sum, is not, or is not treated as, an amount by way of rent for the purposes of the said section 81, the relevant expenditure falling to be treated as having been incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the qualifying premises to which the qualifying lease relates shall be deemed, for the purposes of this subsection, to be reduced by the lesser of—

(a) the amount of the said premium or sum or, as the case may be, the said part of such premium or sum, and

(b) the amount which bears to the amount mentioned in paragraph (a) the same proportion as the amount of the relevant expenditure actually incurred in relation to the qualifying premises which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(3) Where a qualifying premises forms part of a building or is one of a number of buildings in a single development, or forms part of a building which is itself one of a number of buildings in a single development, there shall be made such apportionment as is necessary of the relevant expenditure incurred on the said building or buildings for the purposes of determining the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises.

(4) Where a house is a qualifying premises and at any time during the relevant period in relation to the premises either of the following events occurs:

(a) the house ceases to be a qualifying premises, or

(b) the ownership of the lessor's interest in the house passes to any other person but the house does not cease to be a qualifying premises,

then the person who, before the occurrence of the event, received or was entitled to receive a deduction under subsection (2) in respect of relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the qualifying premises shall be deemed to have received on the day before the day of the occurrence an amount by way of rent from the qualifying premises equal to the amount of the deduction.

(5) Where the event mentioned in subsection (4) (b) occurs in the relevant period in relation to a house which is a qualifying premises, the person to whom the ownership of the lessor's interest in the said house passes shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period an amount of relevant expenditure in relation to the said house equal to the amount of the relevant expenditure which, under section 70 (5) or any of the provisions of this section, apart from the proviso to subsection (2), the said lessor was treated as having incurred in the qualifying period in relation to the said house:

Provided that, in the case of a person who purchases such a house, the amount so treated as having been incurred by such person shall not exceed—

(a) the net price paid by such person on the sale, or

(b) in case only a part of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house falls to be treated, under section 70 (5), as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to the said net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house.

(6) Where relevant expenditure is incurred in relation to a house and before the house is used subsequent to the incurring of that expenditure it is sold, the person who buys the house shall be treated, for the purposes of this section, as having incurred in the qualifying period relevant expenditure in relation to the house equal to—

(a) the amount of such expenditure which falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period, or

(b) (i) the net price paid by such person on the sale, or

(ii) in case only a part of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house falls to be treated, under section 70 (5), as having been incurred in the qualifying period, the amount which bears to the said net price the same proportion as that part bears to the whole of the relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the house,

whichever is the lower:

Provided that, where the house is sold more than once before it is used subsequent to the incurring of the relevant expenditure in relation to the house, the provisions of this subsection shall have effect only in relation to the last of those sales.

(7) This section shall not apply in the case of any refurbishment unless planning permission, in so far as it is required, in respect of the work carried out in the course of the refurbishment has been granted under the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts, 1963 to 1993.

(8) Expenditure to which a person is entitled to relief under this section shall not include any expenditure in respect of which any person is entitled to a deduction, relief or allowance under any other provision of the Tax Acts.

(9) The provisions of section 70 shall have effect for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Residential accommodation: allowance to owner-occupiers in respect of expenditure on construction or refurbishment.

69. —(1) In this section—

qualifying expenditure”, in relation to an individual, means an amount equal to the amount of the expenditure incurred by the individual on the construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment of a qualifying premises which is a qualifying owner-occupied dwelling in relation to the individual after deducting from that amount of expenditure any sum in respect of or by reference to that expenditure, or in respect of or by reference to the qualifying premises or the construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment work in respect of which it was incurred, which the individual has received, or is entitled to receive, directly or indirectly, from the State, any board established by statute or any public or local authority;

qualifying owner-occupied dwelling”, in relation to an individual, means a qualifying premises which is first used, after the qualifying expenditure has been incurred, by such an individual as that individual's only or main residence;

qualifying premises”, in relation to the incurring of qualifying expenditure, means, subject to subsections (3) and (4) (a) of section 70 , a house—

(a) the site of which is on a designated island,

(b) which is used solely as a dwelling,

(c) in respect of which, if it is not a new house (within the meaning of section 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 ) provided for sale, there is in force a certificate of reasonable cost the amount specified in which in respect of the cost of construction or, as the case may be, refurbishment of the house to which the certificate relates is not less than the expenditure actually incurred on such construction or refurbishment, as the case may be, and

(d) the total floor area of which—

(i) is not less than 30 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in the case where the house is a separate self-contained flat or maisonette in a building of two or more storeys, or

(ii) is not less than 35 square metres and not more than 125 square metres in any other case;

refurbishment” has the same meaning as in section 68 .

(2) Subject to subsection (3), where an individual, having made a claim in that behalf, proves to have incurred qualifying expenditure in a year of assessment, the individual shall be entitled, for that year of assessment and for any of the 9 immediately subsequent years of assessment in which the qualifying premises in respect of which the individual incurred the qualifying expenditure is the only or main residence of the individual, to have a deduction made from the individual's total income of an amount equal to 5 per cent. of the amount of that expenditure:

Provided that a deduction shall be given under this section in respect of qualifying expenditure only in so far as that expenditure falls to be treated under section 70 (5) as having been incurred in the qualifying period.

(3) Where qualifying expenditure in relation to a qualifying premises is incurred by two or more persons, they shall be treated as having incurred the expenditure in the proportions in which they actually bore the expenditure and the expenditure shall be apportioned accordingly.

(4) Section 198 (inserted by section 18 of the Finance Act, 1980 ) of the Income Tax Act, 1967, is hereby amended, in subsection (1) (a), by the insertion of the following subparagraph after subparagraph (xvi) (inserted by section 7 of the Finance Act, 1995):

“(xvii) so far as it flows from relief under section 69 of the Finance Act, 1996, in the proportion in which they incurred the expenditure giving rise to the relief,”.

(5) The provisions of section 70 shall have effect for the purposes of supplementing this section.

Provisions supplementary to sections 66 to 69 .

70. —(1) A lease shall not be a qualifying lease for the purposes of section 66 , 67 or 68 if the terms of the lease contain any provisions enabling the lessee or any other person, directly or indirectly, at any time to acquire any interest in the house to which the lease relates for a consideration which is less than that which might be expected to be given at that time for the acquisition of the interest if the negotiations for that acquisition were conducted in the open market at arm's length.

(2) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 66 , 67 or 68 if it is occupied as a dwelling by any person who is connected with the person who is entitled, in relation to the expenditure incurred on the construction of, conversion into, or, as the case may be, refurbishment of, the house, to a deduction under section 66 (2), 67 (4) or 68 (2), as the case may be, and the terms of the qualifying lease in relation to the house are not such as might have been expected to be included in the lease if the negotiations for the lease had been at arm's length.

(3) (a) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 66 or, in so far as it applies to expenditure other than expenditure on refurbishment, section 69 unless it complies with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment from time to time for the purposes of section 4 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards of construction of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services therein.

(b) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 67 or 68 or, in so far as it applies to expenditure on refurbishment, section 69 unless it complies with such conditions, if any, as may be determined by the Minister for the Environment from time to time for the purposes of section 5 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in relation to standards for improvements of houses and the provision of water, sewerage and other services therein.

(4) (a) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 66 , 67 , 68 or 69 unless persons authorised in writing by the Minister for the Environment for the purposes of those sections are permitted to inspect it at all reasonable times upon production, if so requested by a person affected, of their authorisations.

(b) A house shall not be a qualifying premises for the purposes of section 66 , 67 or 68 unless, throughout the period of any qualifying lease related to that premises, the house is used as the sole or main residence of the lessee in relation to that qualifying lease.

(5) (a) For the purposes of determining, in relation to any claim under section 66 (2), 67 (4), 68 (2) or 69 (2), as the case may be, whether and to what extent expenditure incurred on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, a qualifying premises is incurred or not incurred during the qualifying period, only such an amount of that expenditure as is properly attributable to work on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the premises which was actually carried out during the qualifying period shall be treated as having been incurred during that period.

(b) Where, by virtue of section 65 (2), expenditure on the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, a qualifying premises includes expenditure on the development of any land, paragraph (a) shall have effect, with any necessary modifications, as if the references therein to the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of, the qualifying premises were references to the development of such land.

(6) (a) For the purposes of sections 66 and 67 , other than for the purposes mentioned in subsection (5) (a), expenditure incurred on the construction of, or, as the case may be, conversion into, a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the date of the first letting of the premises under a qualifying lease.

(b) For the purposes of section 68 , other than for the purposes mentioned in subsection (5) (a), relevant expenditure incurred in relation to the refurbishment of a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the date of the commencement of the relevant period, in relation to the premises, determined as respects the refurbishment to which the relevant expenditure relates.

(c) For the purposes of section 69 , other than for the purposes mentioned in subsection (5) (a), expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of a qualifying premises shall be deemed to have been incurred on the earliest date after the expenditure was actually incurred that the premises is in use as a dwelling.

(7) For the purposes of sections 66 , 67 and 68 , expenditure shall not be regarded as incurred by a person in so far as it has been or is to be met directly or indirectly by the State, by any board established by statute or by any public or local authority.

(8) Paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Capital Gains Tax Act, 1975 , shall have effect as if a deduction under section 66 (2), 67 (4) or 68 (2), as the case may be, were a capital allowance and as if any amount by way of rent deemed to have been received by a person under section 66 (4), 67 (6) or 68 (4), as the case may be, were a balancing charge.

(9) An appeal to the Appeal Commissioners shall lie on any question arising under this section or under section 66 , 67 , 68 or 69 , other than a question on which an appeal lies under section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979 , in like manner as an appeal would lie against an assessment to income tax or corporation tax and the provisions of the Tax Acts relating to appeals shall apply and have effect accordingly.