S.I. No. 58/1989:

INCOME TAX (EMPLOYMENTS) REGULATIONS, 1989.

INCOME TAX (EMPLOYMENTS) REGULATIONS, 1989.

The Revenue Commissioners, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by section 127 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 (No. 6 of 1967), hereby make the following regulations:

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Income Tax (Employments) Regulations, 1989, and shall come into operation on the 6th day of April, 1989.

(2) In these Regulations "the Principal Regulations" means the Income Tax (Employments) Regulations, 1960 ( S.I. No. 28 of 1960 ).

2. Regulation 2 of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (1):

"(1A) In Regulations 31A and 32 'authorised person' means an employer who has been authorised in writing by the Collector for the purposes of Regulation 31A and, in relation to the said Regulations, 'authorise', 'authorised' and 'authorisation' shall be construed accordingly.".

3. The Principal Regulations are hereby amended by the insertion of the following Regulation after Regulation 31:

"31A. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Regulation 31, the Collector may, from time to time, authorise, in writing, an employer (unless the employer objects) to remit to him within nine days from the end of such period longer than an income tax month but not exceeding a year (which in this Regulation and in Regulation 32 is referred to as the 'accounting period') all amounts of tax which he was liable under these Regulations to deduct from emoluments paid by him during such accounting period, reduced by any amounts which he was liable under these Regulations to repay during such accounting period.

(2) For the purposes of issuing an authorisation to an employer pursuant to this Regulation, the Collector shall, where he considers it appropriate, have regard to the following matters:

( a ) he has reasonable grounds to believe that--

(i) the authorisation will not result in a loss of tax, and

(ii) the employer will meet all his obligations under the authorisation,

and

( b ) the employer--

(i) has been a registered employer within the meaning of Regulation 8 during all of the period consisting of one year immediately preceding the year in which an authorisation for the purposes of this Regulation would, if it were issued, have effect, and

(ii) has made all returns which he is required to make in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 35 (1).

(3) An authorisation for the purposes of this Regulation may--

( a ) be issued either without conditions or subject to such conditions as the Collector, having regard in particular to the matters set out in paragraph (2) of this Regulation, considers proper and specifies in writing to the employer concerned when issuing the authorisation, and

( b ) without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, require an authorised person to remit to the Collector, within nine days from the end of each income tax month (other than the final income tax month) which is comprised in an accounting period, such an amount as may be specified by the Collector.

(4) The Collector may terminate an authorisation by notice in writing and, where an employer requests him to do so, he shall terminate the authorisation.

(5) For the purposes of terminating an authorisation issued pursuant to this Regulation, the Collector shall, where he considers it appropriate, have regard to the following matters:

( a ) he has reasonable grounds to believe that the authorisation has resulted or could result in a loss of tax,

( b ) the employer--

(i) has failed to remit to the Collector within nine days from the end of the preceding accounting period all amounts of tax which he was liable under these Regulations to deduct from emoluments paid by him during that accounting period, reduced by any amounts which he was liable under these regulations to repay during that accounting period, or

(ii) has furnished, or there is furnished on his behalf, any incorrect information for the purposes of the issue to him of an authorisation, or

(iii) has failed to make within the required time limit all returns which he is required to make in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 35 (1), or

(iv) has not complied with the conditions, if any, specified by the Collector under paragraph (3) of this Regulation in relation to the issue to him of an authorisation.

(6) In relation to any income tax month in respect of which he has not remitted an amount of tax in accordance with paragraph (1) of this Regulation or paragraph (1) of Regulation 31, an employer whose authorisation is terminated shall be deemed to have complied with paragraph (1) of Regulation 31 if he remits to the Collector, within twenty-one days of issue of a notice of termination, the amount of tax which he would have been required to remit in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (1) of Regulation 31 if he were an employer to whom an authorisation had not been issued.

(7) ( a ) An authorisation shall be deemed to have been terminated by the Collector on the date that an authorised person ceases to be an employer.

( b ) An employer whose authorisation is deemed to have been terminated shall, in relation to any income tax month (or part of an income tax month) comprised in the accounting period which was in operation in his case on the date of such termination, comply with paragraph (1) of Regulation 31A as if he were an authorised person whose accounting period ended on the last day of the income tax month during which the termination occurred:

Provided that the personal representative of a deceased employer shall be deemed to be the employer for the purposes of this subparagraph.

(8) The provisions of paragraphs (2) to (7) of Regulation 31 shall apply to this Regulation as if references therein to 'income tax month' were references to 'accounting period'.".

4. Regulation 32 of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended--

( a ) by the substitution, in paragraph (1), of the following subparagraph for subparagraph (a):

"( a ) If within nine days from the end of any income tax month or accounting period (as provided for in Regulation 31A) the employer has remitted no amount of tax to the Collector under Regulation 31 or 31A for that income tax month or accounting period, as the case may be, and the Collector is unaware of the amount, if any, which the employer is liable so to remit, the Collector may give notice to the employer requiring him to send to the Collector, within the time limited in the notice, a return showing the name of every employee to whom he made any payment of emoluments or repayment of tax in the period from the preceding 6th day of April to the day (being the last day of an income tax month or of an accounting period) specified by the notice, together with such particulars with regard to each such employee as the notice may require, being particulars of--

(i) the amount of the tax-free allowances appropriate to the employee's case;

(ii) the payments of emoluments made to him during that period; and

(iii) any other matter affecting the calculation of the tax which the employer was liable under these Regulations to deduct or to repay to the employee during that period,

and the employer shall comply with the requirements of the notice.",

and

( b ) by the substitution of the following paragraphs for paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively:

"(3) A notice given by the Collector under paragraph (1) of this Regulation may extend to two or more consecutive income tax months or two or more accounting periods, as the case may be.

(4) A notice may be given by the Collector under paragraph (1) of this Regulation notwithstanding that an amount of tax has been remitted to the Collector by the employer under Regulation 31 or 31A for any income tax month or accounting period, if the Collector is not satisfied that the amount so remitted is the full amount which the employer is liable to remit to him for that income tax month or accounting period, as the case may be, and the provisions of this Regulation shall have effect accordingly.".

GIVEN this 23rd day of March, 1989.

C. C. MAC DOMHNAILL,

Revenue Commissioner.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Regulations amend the Income Tax (Employments) Regulations, 1960, to provide that, where the Collector-General authorises the procedure, an employer may make remittances of PAYE/PRSI deducted from his employees at longer intervals (not exceeding a year) than the normal monthly remittance basis. The present Regulations also empower the Collector-General

(i) to take account of certain circumstances (including the suitability or otherwise of the case for the new procedure) and to impose certain conditions (such as the making of payments on account) when issuing an authorisation, and

(ii) to terminate an authorisation.

The Regulations have effect as on and from 6 April, 1989.