Last Thursday, a delegation from the Institute attended the seventh meeting of the Department of Finance’s Business Tax Stakeholder Forum (BTSF) at the Department of Finance’s offices on Upper Merrion Street. The Department provided updates to stakeholders on a range of business tax issues both domestically and internationally, as well as providing an update on the work ongoing around the Irish Presidency of the European Council later this year.
On the domestic front, the Department explained its business tax priorities for 2026 and provided updates on various ongoing projects, such as Phase One of the reform of the taxation of interest in Ireland. One of the key priorities for 2026 on the business tax front is the Research & Development (R&D) tax credit and the recommendations arising from last year’s public consultation. Key to any changes which will be considered by the Department will be to identify the potential for additionality to the economic activity in Ireland.
In terms of the now well publicised proposals for an Irish Savings and Investment Account, the Department acknowledged its consideration of the Swedish model in particular. As part of this work, a roadmap is expected to be published very shortly. We will have more details in due course once this is published.
On the international front, the Department provided an update on the work to implement the Pillar Two Side-by-Side Package, and provided more detail into the work to commence on addressing the tax complexity faced by cross-border/hybrid workers on the island of Ireland. The work on Pillar Two is being addressed at a subgroup of the BTSF, which the Institute attends also. On the issues currently facing cross-border workers, we are due to meet the Department separately on this in the coming weeks and we will have a full update for readers at that point.
Finally, on the EU Presidency, there is a substantial amount of work ongoing as the Government prepares to take up the role this summer. From a tax point of view, the Tax Omnibus Directive and the Directive on Administrative Cooperation (DAC) Recast Directive will be two files which the Government will be keen to progress during its term. From an overall perspective, the Government will be aiming to highlight the need for simplification in light of the impact of the current complexity on EU competitiveness.
In closing, a short note on the BTSF for readers who may not be familiar with the forum. The BTSF was established as a forum between the Department of Finance and key stakeholders to discuss business tax policy. The meetings are chaired by senior Department officials and are attended by representatives from various trade and professional organisations, as well as other key governmental stakeholders. It has proven so far to be a very productive and engaging forum and we look forward to the continued success of the forum into the future.
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