Finance Act, 2000

Rights to acquire shares or other assets.

27.—The Principal Act is amended—

(a) in section 128—

(i) by the insertion after subsection (2) of the following:

“(2A) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Tax Acts, where a person is, by virtue of this section, chargeable to tax under Schedule E for a year of assessment in respect of an amount equal to the gain realised from the exercise, assignment or release of a right, he or she shall be a chargeable person for that year for the purposes of Part 41, unless—

(a) that amount is deducted in determining the amount of his or her tax-free allowances for that year by virtue of regulation 10(1)(b) of the Income Tax (Employments) Regulations, 1960 ( S.I. No. 28 of 1960 ), or

(b) the person has been exempted by an inspector from the requirements of section 951 by reason of a notice given under subsection (6) of that section.”,

(ii) by the substitution in subsection (11) of “30 June in the year of assessment following” for “30 days after the end of”, and

(iii) by the insertion after subsection (11) of the following:

“(11A) Where in relation to any right—

(a) the person referred to in subsection (11) is resident in a territory other than the State, and

(b) the person who obtains that right is a director or an employee of a company which is resident in the State,

the provisions of subsection (11) shall also apply to that company.”,

(b) by the insertion after section 128 of the following:

“Deferral of payment of tax under section 128.

128A.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), in any case where—

(a) for any year of assessment a person is chargeable to tax under Schedule E, by virtue of section 128, on an amount equal to a gain realised by the exercise of a right to acquire shares in a company (‘the relevant shares’), which right was exercised on or after 6 April 2000, and

(b) following an assessment for the year in which that right was exercised (‘the relevant year’) an amount of tax, chargeable by virtue of section 128 in respect of the amount referred to in paragraph (a), is payable to the Collector-General, and

(c) the person concerned makes an election in accordance with subsection (3),

he or she shall be entitled to defer payment of the tax in accordance with subsection (4).

(2) Subsection (1) shall not apply where the relevant shares are disposed of by the person concerned in the relevant year.

(3) An election under this section shall be made by notice in writing to the inspector on or before 31 January in the year of assessment following the relevant year.

(4) Where an election has been made under this section the tax referred to in subsection (1)(b) shall notwithstanding any other provision of the Income Tax Acts, but subject to the provisions of this section, be paid on or before the earlier of—

(a) 1 November in the year of assessment following the year of assessment in which the relevant shares are disposed of, or

(b) 1 November in the year of assessment following the year of assessment beginning 7 years after the relevant year.

(5) The reference in subsection (4)(a) to the relevant shares being disposed of includes a part disposal of such shares, and in the case of a part disposal, the tax to bepaid shall be determined in a manner that is just and reasonable.

(6) Subject to any other provision of the Income Tax Acts requiring income of any description to be treated as the highest part of a person's income, in determining for the purposes of paragraph (b) of subsection (1) what tax is chargeable on a person by virtue of section 128 in respect of an amount referred to in paragraph (a) of that subsection, that amount shall be treated as the highest part of his or her income for the relevant year.

(7) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Income Tax Acts, the due date in relation to tax, the payment of which has been deferred by virtue of an election under this section, shall, for the purposes of section 1080, be the date when the amount becomes due and payable under subsection (4).”,

and

(c) in Schedule 29—

(i) by the deletion in column 2 of “section 128(11)”, and

(ii) by the insertion in column 3 after “section 127(5)” of “section 128(11) and (11A)”.