Income Tax Act, 1967.

Chapter VI

Taxation of Rents and Certain Other Payments

Interpretation.

80.—(1) In this Chapter, save where the context otherwise requires—

“easement” includes any right, privilege or benefit in, over or derived from premises;

“lease” includes an agreement for a lease and any tenancy, but does not include a mortgage, and “lessee” and “lessor” shall be construed accordingly, and “lessee” and “lessor” include, respectively, the successors in title of a lessee or a lessor;

“long lease” means a lease granted for a term exceeding fifty years;

“premises” means any lands, tenements or hereditaments in the State;

“premium” includes any like sum, whether payable to the immediate or a superior lessor;

“rent” includes anything in the nature of rent and any payment made by the lessee to defray the cost of work of maintenance of or repairs to the premises, not being work required by the lease to be carried out by the lessee;

“short lease” means a lease granted for a term not exceeding fifty years;

“unit of valuation” means any lands, tenements or hereditaments valued under the Valuation Acts as a unit.

(2) In ascertaining, for the purposes of the definitions of “long lease” and “short lease” contained in subsection (1), the duration of a lease, the following provisions shall have effect:

(a) where the terms of the lease include provision for the determination thereof by notice given either by the lessor or by the lessee, the lease shall not be treated as granted for a term longer than one ending at the earliest date on which it could be determined by notice;

(b) where any of the terms of the lease (whether relating to forfeiture or to any other matter) or any other circumstance render it unlikely that the lease will continue beyond a date falling before the expiration of the term of the lease, the lease shall not be treated as having been granted for a term longer than one ending on that date.

(3) Any reference in this Chapter to one person being connected with another shall be construed in accordance with section 96 (3).

(4) Where the estate or interest of any lessor of any premises is the subject of a mortgage and either the mortgagee is in possession or the rents and profits are being received by a receiver appointed by or on the application of the mortgagee, that estate or interest shall be deemed, for the purposes of this Chapter, to be vested in the mortgagee, and references to a lessor shall be construed accordingly; but the amount of the liability to tax of any such mortgagee shall be computed as if the mortgagor was still in possession or, as the case may be, no receiver had been appointed, and as if it were the amount of the liability of the mortgagor that was being computed.