Finance Act 2020

Amendment of Schedule 2 (zero-rated goods and services) to, and section 46 (rates of tax) of, Principal Act

44. The Principal Act is amended—

(a) in paragraph 11 of Schedule 2, by inserting the following subparagraph after subparagraph (3):

“(4) (a) The supply of personal protection equipment, thermometers, hand sanitiser, oxygen, medical ventilators and specialist respiratory equipment including respirators for intensive and sub-intensive care and other oxygen therapy apparatus including oxygen tents, when supplied—

(i) to—

(I) the Health Service Executive, for use in the delivery of Covid-19 related health care services, and

(II) hospitals, general practitioners, nursing homes and residential care facilities, for use in the delivery of Covid-19 related health care services to their patients or residents, as the case may be,

and

(ii) subject to such order as may be made under section 46(5), during the period beginning on 9 April 2020 and ending on 30 April 2021.

(b) In this subparagraph, ‘Covid-19’ has the same meaning as in the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 .”,

and

(b) in section 46, by inserting the following subsection after subsection (4):

“(5) (a) Where the European Commission adopts a decision to extend or further extend the period of application of the relief granted by Commission Decision (EU) 2020/491 to a date later than 30 April 2021 or to any later date, as the case may be (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘extended period’), the Minister shall by order amend subclause (ii) of paragraph 11(4)(a) of Schedule 2 so as to extend or further extend, as the case may be, the period specified in that subclause for such extended period.

(b) An order under paragraph (a) may, if so expressed, have retrospective effect.

(c) An order under paragraph (a) shall be laid before Dáil Éireann as soon as may be after it has been made and, if a resolution annulling the order is passed by Dáil Éireann within the next 21 days on which Dáil Éireann has sat after the order is laid before it, the order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

(d) In this subsection—

‘Commission Decision (EU) 2020/491’ means Commission Decision (EU) 2020/491 of 3 April 202034 on relief from import duties and VAT exemption on importation granted for goods needed to combat the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak during 2020, as amended by Commission Decision (EU) 2020/1101 of 23 July 202035 and Commission Decision (EU) 2020/1573 of 28 October 202036 ;

‘Covid-19’ has the same meaning as in the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 .”.

34 OJ No. L103, 3.4.2020, p.1

35 OJ No. L241, 27.7.2020, p.36

36 OJ No. L359, 29.10.2020, p.8