Fall in rich expat tax receipts ‘suspicious’
THE number of millionaires and billionaires who have filed tax returns under the controversial domicile levy has more than halved from 36 to 17 since 2010, new figures have revealed.
People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said the figures were suspicious and suggested that ‘creative accounting’ may be at work.
In 2010, a grand total of 36 millionaires and billionaires, during the height of austerity, paid a total of €3.74million in tax. This declined to a low of 12 individuals who paid €1.141million in 2018.
The figures have decreased further since then with just 17 paying a total of €3.13million in the two years of 2018 and 2019.
To date, the Revenue figures reveal that payments of €23.7million have been made by exiles over the last decade.
Commenting on the figures, Mr Boyd Barrett said: ‘The decline in numbers is very curious. One would think on those figures our billionaires are in danger of becoming an endangered species.’
He added: ‘These figures are not credible, given the increase in billionaires and wealth across Ireland and the world. The suspicion must be that some form of creative accountancy may be in play.’
A Government source warned: ‘We hope that they do not become like the corncrake and go into a great decline.’
The levy was introduced in 2010 to ensure Irish tax expatriates who still live here for a portion of the year contribute to the Exchequer, irrespective of where they are resident for tax purposes.
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said those who qualify must have ‘substantial income and assets located in the State’. The domicile levy, he said, ‘applies to Irish domiciled individuals whose worldwide income exceeds €1million, whose Irish property is greater in value than €5million and whose income tax liability in a year is less than €200,000’.
Separately, the Mail has learned that Irish billionaires who have been confined in Ireland because of coronavirus will not have to pay more taxes.
The Revenue noted: ‘Where an individual is prevented from leaving the State on his or her intended day of departure due to extraordinary natural occurrences none of which could reasonably have been foreseen and avoided, the individual will not be regarded as being present in the State for tax residence purposes.’