Finance Act, 1999

Amendment of Chapter 3 (designated areas, designated streets, enterprise areas and multi-storey car parks in certain urban areas) of Part 10 of Principal Act.

44.—Chapter 3 of Part 10 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) in section 339(2), by the insertion after paragraph (c) of the following paragraph:

“(d) Where, in relation to the construction of, conversion into, refurbishment of, or, as the case may be, construction or refurbishment of a building or structure which complies with the requirements of subparagraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) of paragraph (c), being a qualifying premises within the meaning of section 346, 347, 348 or 349, where—

(i) the expenditure to be incurred on the house has not been fully incurred by the 31st day of December, 1998, and

(ii) the relevant local authority gives a certificate in writing on or before the 28th day of February, 1999, to the person constructing, converting or refurbishing, as the case may be, the house stating that it is satisfied that not less than 50 per cent of the total cost of the house and the site thereof had been incurred on or before the 31st day of December, 1998,

then, the reference in paragraph (a) of the definition of ‘qualifying period’ in subsection (1) to the period ending on the 31st day of July, 1997, shall be construed as a reference to the period ending on the 30th day of April, 1999.”,

(b) in section 340(1)(b), by the insertion after “the 31st day of July, 1997” of “, or, as the case may be, after the day to which the reference to the 31st day of July, 1997, is, by virtue of section 339(2), to be construed”,

(c) in section 343—

(i) in subsection (1), by the substitution for the definition of “qualifying company” of the following:

“‘qualifying company’ means a company—

(a) (i) which has been approved for financial assistance under a scheme administered by Forfás, Enterprise Ireland, the Industrial Development Agency (Ireland) or údarás na Gaeltachta, or

(ii) which is engaged in a qualifying trading operation within the meaning of paragraph (c) of the definition of ‘qualifying trading operations’,

and

(b) to which the Minister has given a certificate under subsection (2) which has not been withdrawn in accordance with subsection (5) or (6);”,

(ii) in subsection (2), by the substitution for paragraph (a) of the following:

“(a) on the recommendation of Forfás (in conjunction with Enterprise Ireland, the Industrial Development Agency (Ireland) or údarás na Gaeltachta, as may be appropriate, or the Minister for Public Enterprise in the case of a company to which paragraph (a)(ii) of the definition of ‘qualifying company’ refers) in accordance with guidelines laid down by the Minister, and”,

and

(iii) in subsection (8)(a), by the substitution, with effect as on and from the 1st day of January, 1998, for subparagraph (iv) of the following:

“(iv) the following subsection were substituted for subsection (4) of that section:

“(4) An industrial building allowance, in the case of a qualifying building (within the meaning of section 343(1)), shall be of an amount equal to—

(a) 25 per cent, or

(b) in the case of such a building the site of which is wholly within an area described in an order referred to in section 340(2)(i), 50 per cent,

of the capital expenditure mentioned in subsection (2).',”,

(d) in section 344—

(i) in subsection (1) in the definition of “qualifying period”—

(I) in paragraph (b), by the substitution of “of this definition, or” for “of this definition;”,

and

(II) by the insertion after paragraph (b) of the following paragraph:

“(c) the 31st day of December, 2000, where, in relation to the construction or refurbishment of the qualifying multi-storey car park concerned (not being a qualifying multi-storey car park any part of the site of which is within either of the county boroughs of Cork or Dublin), the relevant local authority gives a certificate in writing on or before the 30th day of September, 1999, to the person constructing or refurbishing the qualifying multi-storey car park stating that it is satisfied that not less than 15 per cent of the total cost of the qualifying multi-storey car park and the site thereof had been incurred on or before the 30th day of June, 1999;”,

(ii) in subsection (2)(a), by the substitution of “subsections (3) to (6A)” for “subsections (3) to (6)”, and

(iii) by the insertion after subsection (6) of the following subsection:

“(6A) Subsection (6) shall apply and have effect as respects capital expenditure referred to in subsection (2)(b), which is incurred after the 31st day of July, 1998, only if a qualifying lease, within the meaning of section 345, is granted in respect of the qualifying multi-storey car park in respect of which that expenditure is incurred.”,

and

(e) in section 345—

(i) in subsection (1), by the substitution for the definition of “qualifying lease” of the following:

“‘qualifying lease’ means, subject to subsections (1A) and (8), a lease in respect of a qualifying premises granted in the qualifying period, or within the period of one year from the day next after the end of the qualifying period, on bona fide commercial terms by a lessor to a lessee not connected with the lessor, or with any other person entitled to a rent in respect of the qualifying premises, whether under that lease or any other lease but, notwithstanding the foregoing, a lease which would otherwise be a qualifying lease shall not be such a lease if granted in respect of a building or structure within the meaning of paragraph (a)(iii) of the definition of ‘qualifying premises’ the site of which is wholly within an area—

(a) described in an order referred to in section 340(1)(a), if the lease is granted on or after the 31st day of July, 1999, or

(b) described in Schedule 7, if the lease is granted on or after the 31st day of December, 1999, or

(c) described in an order referred to in section 340(2)(i), irrespective of the date of the granting of the lease;”,

and

(ii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1):

“(1A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, including this section, ‘qualifying period’ for the purposes of this section in the case of a building or structure within the meaning of paragraph (a)(v) of the definition of ‘qualifying premises’ in subsection (1) means the period commencing on the 1st day of August, 1994, and ending on—

(a) the 31st day of July, 1997, or

(b) the 30th day of June, 1998, where, in relation to the construction or refurbishment of the qualifying multi-storey car park concerned, the relevant local authority has certified in accordance with the requirements of paragraph (b) of the definition of ‘qualifying period’ in section 344(1).”.