Chapter II

General

159. —(1) In this section—

“the 1993 amending section” means section 135 of the Finance Act, 1993 ;

“capital services” has the same meaning as it has in the principal section;

“the forty-fourth additional annuity” means the sum charged on the Central Fund under subsection (4);

“the principal section” means section 22 of the Finance Act, 1950 .

(2) In relation to the twenty-nine successive financial years commencing with the financial year ending on the 31st day of December, 1994, subsection (4) of the 1993 amending section shall have effect with the substitution of “£63,399,051” for “£60,543,110”.

(3) Subsection (6) of the 1993 amending section shall have effect with the substitution of “£47,996,485” for “£46,534,800”.

(4) A sum of £68,241,818 to redeem borrowings, and interest thereon, in respect of capital services shall be charged annually on the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof in the thirty successive financial years commencing with the financial year ending on the 31st day of December, 1994.

(5) The forty-fourth additional annuity shall be paid into the Capital Services Redemption Account in such manner and at such times in the relevant financial year as the Minister for Finance may determine.

(6) Any amount of the forty-fourth additional annuity, not exceeding £52,452,200 in any financial year, may be applied towards defraying the interest on the public debt.

(7) The balance of the forty-fourth additional annuity shall be applied in any one or more of the ways specified in subsection (6) of the principal section.

160. —(1) In this section—

“the Fund” means the Small Savings Reserve Fund established by subsection (2);

“the Minister” means the Minister for Finance;

“small savings” means savings certificates (being savings to which section 30 of the Finance Act, 1940 , relates), national instalment savings (being savings to which section 53 of the Finance Act, 1970 , relates) and savings bonds (being savings to which section 54 of the Finance Act, 1970 , relates).

(2) There is hereby established a fund, to be known as the Small Savings Reserve Fund, which shall be under the control of the Minister.

(3) The Minister shall pay into the Fund in the year 1994, the sum of £60,000,000, and in each year thereafter such sums, if any, as the Minister may decide.

(4) Where in any calendar year interest payments on encashments of small savings exceed 11 per cent. of the total interest accrued on such savings at the end of the immediately preceding calendar year, the resources of the Fund may be applied towards meeting so much of those interest payments which, as a percentage of the said total interest accrued, exceed 11 per cent.

(5) The resources of the Fund shall be made available, without payment of interest, to the Exchequer by way of repayable ways and means advances.

(6) Accounts prepared under section 12 of the National Treasury Management Agency Act, 1990 , shall include an account of payments into and out of the Fund and a statement of the resources in the Fund—

(a) on the 1st day of January of the calendar year in which the financial year of the said accounts commences, and

(b) on the 31st day of December in that calendar year.

(7) The functions of the Minister referred to in the First Schedule to the National Treasury Management Agency Act, 1990 , for the purposes of section 5 of that Act shall be construed as if there were included in that Schedule for those purposes a reference to the functions of the Minister under this section.

161. —(1) This section applies to any stock or other form of security issued by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

(2) Any stock or other form of security to which this section applies shall be deemed—

(a) to be a security issued under the authority of the Minister for Finance within the meaning of section 466 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , and

(b) to be a security to which section 63 of the Finance Act, 1969 , applies,

and those sections shall apply and have effect accordingly.

(3) Section 474 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , is hereby amended in subsection (1) by the insertion of “, or section 161 of the Finance Act, 1994” after “ section 92 of the Finance Act, 1973 ”.

(4) The First Schedule (as amended by the Finance Act, 1970 , and subsequent enactments) to the Stamp Act, 1891, is hereby amended by the insertion in paragraph 1 of the Heading “GENERAL EXEMPTIONS FROM ALL STAMP DUTIES” of the following subparagraph after subparagraph (ia) (inserted by the Finance Act, 1973 ):

“(ib) any stock or other form of security to which section 161 of the Finance Act, 1994, applies,”.

(5) Section 66 (as amended by the Finance Act, 1989 ) of the Finance Act, 1984 , is hereby amended by the insertion after “Steel Community,” of “the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development,”.

162. —(1) Section 486 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , is hereby amended by the substitution of the following subsections for subsections (1) and (2):

“(1) Where the amount due (whether before or after the passing of this Act) in respect of income tax does not exceed the amount which is the monetary limitation on the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court provided for in an action founded on quasi-contract at reference number 1 of the Third Schedule to the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act, 1961 , the Collector or other officer of the Revenue Commissioners, duly authorised to collect the said tax may sue in that officer's own name in the Circuit Court for the said amount so due as a debt due to the Minister for Finance.

(2) Where the amount so due does not exceed the amount which is the monetary limitation on the jurisdiction of the District Court provided for in an action founded on contract by clause (i) of paragraph A of section 77 of the Courts of Justice Act, 1924 , the Collector or other officer of the Revenue Commissioners duly authorised to collect the said tax may sue in that officer's own name in the District Court for the said amount so due as a debt due to the Minister for Finance.”.

(2) Subsection (1) shall be deemed to have come into force and shall take effect as on and from the 15th day of August, 1991.

163. —(1) Section 1 of the Waiver of Certain Tax, Interest and Penalties Act, 1993 , is hereby amended in paragraph (a) by the substitution in the definition of “the specified period” of “21st day of December” for “30th day of November”.

(2) As respects the year of assessment 1992-93 the following provisions of the Tax Acts shall be construed as if references in those provisions to the 31st day of January were references to the 28th day of February—

(a) section 236 (11) of the Income Tax Act, 1967 ,

(b) section 48 (1) (a) of the Finance Act, 1986 , in subparagraph (IIa) of paragraph (i) of the definition of “specified date”, and

(c) section 9 (1) of the Finance Act, 1988 , and sections 226 (1) and 230 (1) of the Finance Act, 1992 , in the definitions of “specified return date for the chargeable period”.

(3) This section shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 14th day of July, 1993.

164. —(1) In this section, “a member of the Judiciary” means—

(a) a judge of the Supreme Court,

(b) a judge of the High Court,

(c) a judge of the Circuit Court, or

(d) a judge of the District Court.

(2) An allowance payable by way of an annual sum to a member of the Judiciary in accordance with the provisions of section 5 of the Courts of Justice Act, 1953 , and which has been determined, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of the said section 5, by the Minister for Justice in consultation with the Minister for Finance to be in full settlement of the expenses which such a person is obliged to incur in the performance of his duties as a member of the Judiciary and which are not otherwise reimbursed either directly or indirectly out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, shall be exempt from income tax and shall not be reckoned in computing income for the purposes of the Income Tax Acts.

(3) The provisions of rules 3 and 4 of Schedule 2 to the Income Tax Act, 1967 , shall not apply or have effect in relation to expenses in full settlement of which an allowance referred to in subsection (2) is payable and no claim shall lie under those rules in respect of those expenses.

165. —All taxes and duties imposed by this Act are hereby placed under the care and management of the Revenue Commissioners.

166. —(1) This Act may be cited as the Finance Act, 1994.

(2) Parts I and VII (so far as relating to income tax) shall be construed together with the Income Tax Acts and (so far as relating to corporation tax) shall be construed together with the Corporation Tax Acts and (so far as relating to capital gains tax) shall be construed together with the Capital Gains Tax Acts.

(3) Part II (so far as relating to customs) shall be construed together with the Customs Acts and (so far as relating to duties of excise) shall be construed together with the statutes which relate to the duties of excise and to the management of those duties.

(4) Part III shall be construed together with the Value-Added Tax Acts, 1972 to 1993, and may be cited together therewith as the Value-Added Tax Acts, 1972 to 1994.

(5) Part IV shall be construed together with the Stamp Act, 1891, and the enactments amending or extending that Act.

(6) Part V shall be construed together with Part VI of the Finance Act, 1983 , and the enactments amending or extending that Part.

(7) Parts VI and VII (so far as relating to capital acquisitions tax) shall be construed together with the Capital Acquisitions Tax Act, 1976 , and the enactments amending or extending that Act.

(8) Part I shall, save as is otherwise expressly provided therein, be deemed to have come into force and shall take effect as on and from the 6th day of April, 1994.

(9) In relation to Part III :

(a) paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) of section 94 , section 97 and paragraphs (a) and (b) of section 101 shall take effect as on and from the 1st day of July, 1994;

(b) paragraph (a) of section 99 shall take effect as on and from the 1st day of September, 1994;

(c) section 91 shall take effect as on and from the 1st day of January, 1995;

(d) section 93 and paragraph (a) of section 96 shall take effect as on and from such date as the Minister for Finance may, by order, appoint;

(e) paragraph (b) of section 99 shall take effect as on and from the commencement of section 89 ;

(f) the provisions of this Part, other than those specified in paragraphs (a) to (e), shall have effect as on and from the date of passing of this Act.

(10) Any reference in this Act to any other enactment shall, except so far as the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended by or under any other enactment including this Act.

(11) In this Act, a reference to a Part, section or Schedule is to a Part or section of, or Schedule to, this Act, unless it is indicated that reference to some other enactment is intended.

(12) In this Act, a reference to a subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause or subclause is to the subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause or subclause of the provision (including a Schedule) in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended.