Finance Act, 1989

Tax concessions for disabled drivers, etc.

92.—(1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any enactment, the Minister for Finance may, after consultation with the Minister for Health and the Minister for the Environment, make regulations providing for—

(a) the repayment of excise duty and value-added tax and the remission of road tax in respect of a motor vehicle used by, and

(b) the repayment of excise duty relating to hydrocarbon oil used for combustion in the engines of vehicles, to be specified in the regulations, by,

a severely and permanently disabled person—

(i) as a driver, where the disablement is of such a nature that the person concerned could not drive any vehicle unless it is specially constructed or adapted to take account of that disablement, or

(ii) as a passenger, where the vehicle has been specially constructed or adapted to take account of the passenger's disablement, and where the vehicle is adapted, the cost of such adaptation consists of not less than 30 per cent. of the value of the vehicle excluding tax and excise duty, or such lesser percentage in respect of certain cases as may be specified by regulations in respect of the repayment of any tax relating to adaptation costs only.

(2) Regulations under this section shall provide for—

(a) the criteria for eligibility for the remission of the taxes specified in subsection (1), including such further medical criteria in relation to disabilities as may be considered necessary,

(b) subject to subsection (3) (b), the procedures to be used in relation to the primary medical certification of a disabled person and to appeals against such certification,

(c) the procedures in relation to the certification of vehicles to which the regulations relate,

(d) the amount of value-added tax and excise duty repayable in respect of a vehicle to which the regulations relate,

(e) the maximum engine size or sizes to which the regulations relate,

(f) the limits on the frequency of renewal of a vehicle, for the purposes of obtaining a refund of tax or excise duty, and

(g) in the case of the driver concerned, evidence that the vehicle is for his personal use and evidence of his driving capacity,

and the regulations may provide for such other matters as the Minister for Finance considers necessary or expedient for the purposes of giving effect to this section.

(3) (a) Upon the first coming into operation of regulations under this section, section 43 (1) of the Finance Act, 1968 , shall cease to have effect.

(b) Any person who, at the passing of this Act, was the registered owner of a motor vehicle, being a motor vehicle in respect of which such person was entitled to and had received a refund of tax or excise duty by reference to section 43 (1) of the Finance Act, 1968 , shall be deemed to be a person who possesses a primary medical certificate which, subject to compliance with the non-medical requirements set out in the regulations, entitles him to a similar repayment of tax or excise duty by reference to this section.

(4) Regulations made under this section shall be laid before Dáil Éireann as soon as may be after they are made, and if a resolution annulling the regulations is passed by Dáil Éireann within the next subsequent 21 days on which Dáil Éireann has sat after the regulations have been so laid, the regulations shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

(5) In this section—

“medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner registered under the Medical Practitioners Act, 1978 ;

“primary medical certification” means medical certification by a medical practitioner who is the holder of a post in a health board, being the post commonly known as the post of Director of Community Care and Medical Officer of Health, in the area in which the person to whom the certification relates ordinarily resides and “primary medical certificate” shall be construed accordingly.