In this week’s cross-border trading corner, we bring you the latest guidance updates and publications. The most recent Trader Support Service bulletin is also available as is the latest Brexit and Beyond newsletter from the Northern Ireland Assembly EU Affairs team. The Government’s Borders Directorate Communications team has also sent an email setting out details of a technical problem for exporters submitting Certificate of Conformity applications for strawberries and oranges on the Plant Health Export System. The problem is expected to last until 9 June.Miscellaneous guidance updates and publicationsThis week’s miscellaneous guidance updates and publications are as follows:Report a problem using the Customs Declaration Service,Designated export place (DEP) codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service,Maritime ports and wharves location codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service,Using outward processing to process or repair your goods,Preference codes for Data Element 4/17 of the Customs Declaration Service,Internal temporary storage facilities (ITSFs) codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service,Data Element 2/3: Documents and Other Reference Codes (National) of the Customs Declaration Service (CDS), andExternal temporary storage facilities codes for Data Element 5/23 of the Customs Declaration Service. 

In this week’s detailed miscellaneous updates which you can read more about below, HMRC has announced the closure of its online service for overlap relief, and The Tribunal Procedure Committee has launched a consultation which closes on 29 May 2026.In addition to the above, readers should also note the following:The King’s Speech, which sets out the Government’s agenda for new legislation and ongoing Bills for the parliamentary year ahead, takes place later this week on 13 May as part of the State Opening of Parliament. The House of Commons library has published a briefing on this,HMRC has published details of special cases and exclusions for online filing of 2025/26 Self-Assessment returns for individuals and for partnerships. The exclusions for trusts are expected to follow later this month, andHMRC has published the VAT road fuel scale charges which apply from 1 May 2026.  Closure of online overlap relief serviceReaders are reminded that in a recent Agent Update HMRC announced that its online service to obtain overlap relief figures will not be available from 1 June 2026. Overlap relief figures are only relevant to the 2023/24 transition year as a result of basis period reform. If a taxpayer or agent requires overlap relief information after that date, HMRC recommends that the taxpayer (or their agent) checks their records and/or considers using HMRC’s overlap relief calculator. This will be of particular relevance if an agent takes on a new client who has transition profits from 2023/24 which may have been spread over five tax years, commencing in 2023/24. When preparing Self-Assessment returns up to and including 2027/28, the agent will need to be alert for any untaxed transition profits remaining. Any cessation of the taxpayer’s unincorporated business prior to 2027/28 will trigger the assessment of any remaining untaxed transition profits.Tribunal Procedure Committee consultation The Tribunal Procedure Committee (TPC) has launched a consultation seeking views on proposed changes to the rules governing when and how costs (or expenses in Scotland) may be awarded. The consultation closes on 29 May 2026. Responses to the consultation should be made using a questionnaire.The consultation’s aim is to improve clarity, consistency, and fairness in how costs are handled, whilst at the same time ensuring the rules remain simple, accessible and effective in supporting the efficient administration of justice. 

Ahead of the roll-out of multi-factor authentication (MFA) for agents, which we wrote about in March, HMRC has now published updated guidance on this in its Tax Agent's Handbook. The updated guidance explains the actions agents should take now to prepare. HMRC is aiming to roll out MFA for agents from June 2026; confirmation of the official launch date is expected later this week. In the meantime, HMRC has asked us to share details of the actions it recommends agents take to ensure they have no interruption to being able to access their HMRC agent accounts in order to service their clients.HMRC continues to test MFA for agents and will be publishing more information in its guidance ahead of roll-out. Once launched, MFA will ne required for all agent accounts. This is being implemented as it adds an additional step to the sign-in process for agents and helps to protect agent accounts from security breaches, unauthorised access, and HMRC having to suspend access as a result. At present, agents simply input their Government Gateway ID and password to access their Agent Services Account (ASA) or Online Services Account (OSA). Once MFA is introduced, the agent will also need to enter a one-time access code. HMRC’s recommendations to help agents prepare are as follows:Step one: consider having multiple administrators in your practice.The person who creates the firm’s ASA and/or OSA will be automatically set up as an administrator. Administrators can perform additional tasks compared to standard users, for example, they can add or remove users. HMRC has published guidance for firms on how to set up administrators and users for agent accounts. HMRC recommends that firms with multiple staff members have at least two administrators.  Potential benefits from this include allowing the firm to maintain continuity if an administrator is unavailable. The Institute recommends that larger firms may need to consider appointing more than two administrators.Step two: create accounts for staff members, HMRC recommends that each member of staff who requires access to the firm’s ASA or OSA should have their own individual sign-in credentials. Administrators can add new users by following HMRC’s guidance.  Note that creating new users is different for ASAs and OSAs. For OSAs, the administrator must go into each client record and allocate that client to a user or users which will be a significant task for practices which do not currently use individual accounts for staff members. HMRC has recently published a recorded webinar on creating and managing access groups in the ASA (this process is currently in private beta). Creating access groups allows firms to control which clients staff members are able to view and manage in the ASA.  HMRC also recommends that firms remove access when it is no longer required, for example, when a staff member leaves the firm or no longer works on that client.  Step three: investigate how access codes will be received.Access codes can be obtained through an authenticator app, a text message, or a voice call. HMRC recommends that firms use an authenticator app as the primary method and set up an additional method as a back-up. The ‘Remember me’ function will also be able to be used to sign in to an account from the same device, using the same browser, without the need to input an access code for seven days. Step four: review existing MFA options. An existing MFA option may already be set up on the account. If this is the case, when MFA is rolled out, access codes will be sent to the contact details that were saved at the time that option was set up. HMRC recommends that firms ensure that any existing MFA options are correct. The Institute recommends that practices should ensure they still have these contact details .Although administrators can remove the MFA options for users, they cannot set up new MFA options on behalf of users. The user can set up their MFA options: in advance of MFA being activated, or when prompted to do so when they first access the account after MFA has been activated.users will also have the opportunity to re-set up their MFA options if an administrator removes their security preferences. Step five: contact software providers. HMRC recommends that agents who use automated processes or third-party software to manage their sign-in journey make contact with their software provider to check whether any adjustments are needed to this process. HMRC has advised that software developers have been notified of the roll-out of MFA to allow time for any necessary changes. 

The OECD has published its 2026 report on revenue statistics in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Tax revenues increased as a share of GDP between 2023 and 2024 in just over half of the 29 countries covered by this report. 

The Council of the EU has agreed to the European Commission proposal for a legislative amendment to strengthen cooperation and VAT data sharing between the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), and national tax authorities to combat fraud. The proposal aims to give the EPPO and OLAF easier access to the data they require for their investigations. 

At recent meetings between Revenue and stakeholders as part of the Tax Administration Liaison Committee (TALC), Revenue outlined a solution enabling filers to use a Public Interface Test (PIT) environment to submit test Top‑up Tax Information Returns and receive validation‑based success or failure responses. Revenue has now issued a PIT User Guide outlining the process and providing details on how to access the test environment. A series of information videos on Pillar Two registration have also been published

The Department of Finance and the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation have published the Fiscal Monitor for April 2026 which confirms an exchequer deficit of €4.7 billion in the first four months of 2026. This compares to a surplus of €2.8 billion recorded for the same period last year.Although the underlying Exchequer balance fell by €4.2 billion (excluding Apple State Aid receipts), this decline is primarily attributable to transfers to the Future Ireland Fund and the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund.Total tax receipts collected to the end of April were €28 billion. While this represents a €0.6 billion decrease compared with the same period last year, if the once off receipts arising from the Apple case are excluded, total tax receipts were up on last year by €1.1 billion.Income tax receipts collected to the end of April 2026 were €12.4 billion which was an improvement of €0.7 billion (5.7 percent) on the same period in 2025.Corporation tax receipts of €0.5 billion were collected in the month of April which was an increase on the same month last year by €0.4 billion. On a cumulative basis, receipts of €3.5 billion were marginally higher than the same period in 2026, by €0.3 billion.As April is a non- VAT due month, receipts were modest at €0.2 billion, representing a €48 million decrease compared with the same month last year. On a cumulative basis, VAT receipts of €8.3 billion to the end of April are ahead of last year by €0.4 billion. Commenting on the figures, Tánaiste and Minister for Finance, Simon Harris said:“Today’s Exchequer returns are encouraging, highlighting Ireland’s economic resilience during a period of deep global uncertainty. Employment is at record levels, and the income tax returns reflect a strong labour market. Overall tax revenues for April amounted to €5.3 billion, up by almost 8% on the same period last year, reflecting strong income tax, VAT and corporation tax growth for the year to date. These strong revenues provide us with the firepower necessary to support people throughout the coming months”

Revenue published its 2025 Annual Report last week together with a number of research and statistical papers. The report confirms that in 2025, Revenue collected a total of €157 billion, including €34.9 billion collected on behalf of other government departments, agencies, and EU Member States. Timely compliance rates remained strong in 2025, reaching 99 percent for large and medium cases and 93 percent for all other cases, marking a second consecutive year of improvement.The report also outlines that the top decile of workers paid 59 percent of all income tax collected and 62 percent of all Universal Social Charge (USC) collected. The income earned by the top decile represents about 39 percent of all income earned. This reflects the highly progressive nature of Ireland’s income tax system but also our disproportional reliance on high income earners. The concentration of income tax receipts from high income earners needs to be considered as part of a broader recalibration of income tax in Ireland. With almost 30 percent of workers contributing very little to the overall tax take, the Government should consider options to broaden the tax base to ensure we can sustain our tax revenues in a less favourable economic environment.Some more highlights from the report are included below:Interventions: During the year, 237,550 audit and compliance interventions were completed yielding €734 million. In addition, 189 tax avoidance cases were completed with a yield of €41.7 million. A provisional statistical report – Karshan Settlement Opportunity – was also released which outlined that Revenue received relevant submissions from 286 employers with total tax adjustments of circa €26.7 million that involve over 6,600 employees.Debt Management: On 31 December 2025 there were 18,653 phased payment arrangements (PPAs) in place, covering debt of almost €1 billion. This included €708 million of debt included in the Debt Warehouse Scheme. As of 31 December 2025, €251 million of warehoused debt was deemed uncollectable for reasons such as liquidation, examinership and bankruptcy, while €32 million is subject to debt collection.Compliance: The report outlines that 4.5 million electronic returns were filed and almost 16.5 million transactions were processed across all online platforms. The report notes that 6.7 million payroll submissions were successfully filed, alongside 13.5 million declared reportable benefits. Revenue’s statistical report on Income Tax 2025: Insights on PAYE Taxpayers includes further statistics relating to the ERR submissions.Correspondence and Helplines: During 2025 Revenue dealt with over 4.5 million items of correspondence and answered over 1.8 million telephone calls from taxpayers and tax agents. The ‘Hold my Place in Queue’ feature which was introduced in 2024 was expanded across the customer service case base in 2025, and over 27 percent of calls to the PAYE helpline during 2025 were handled by this facility. Promoting tax awareness: The public repository of Tax and Duty Manuals (TDM’s) which set out the rules and guidelines on a wide range of tax and duty matters was referenced in the report, noting there were 1,359 TDM’s issued as of 31 December 2025.VAT Modernisation: The report includes an article on VAT Modernisation (page 42) which provides a summary of the VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) package and outlines details of the planned phased rollout in Ireland.Property taxes: Another article in the report (page 22) provides information regarding the 2025 Local Property Tax (LPT) revaluation which resulted in 1.5 million LPT returns being filed. Ninety percent of the returns were filed online, with 80,000 returns submitted on 3 November alone. In addition, Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) was charged for the first time during 2025 and over 2,100 RZLT returns were filed in respect of this initial charging period, with associated liabilities of €49.2 million being paid. The full list of statistical analysis and research reports published alongside the Annual Report is:Corporation Tax: 2025 Payments and 2024 ReturnsValue Added Tax: Payments and Returns 2025Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) 2025Illegal Tobacco Product Research Surveys 2025Customs Duties in 2025Income Tax 2025: Insights on PAYE TaxpayersReview of Income Tax ReturnsBudget 2025 Compliance MeasuresKarshan Settlement OpportunitySurvey of Customs Community 2025

Last week, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Services Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach (“the Joint Committee”) published its report following the conclusion of the pre-legislative scrutiny of the Finance (Tax Appeals and Fiscal Responsibility) Bill 2024. The Institute gave evidence in March as part of this process where we expressed our unequivocal support for the right to elect for a private hearing at the Tax Appeals Commission (TAC). We also outlined our grave concerns that the proposals would risk undermining the spirit of voluntary compliance that underscores our entire self-assessment model. We were invited to give evidence following our earlier submission to the Joint Committee in December of last year.The main recommendation of the Joint Committee to the Tánaiste (in his capacity as Minister of Finance) is to preserve the existing right of the taxpayer to request a private hearing at the TAC. In Section 2 of the report under the heading “Recommendations”, it states that the Joint Committee “strongly recommends that the Minister for Finance makes no change to the existing provisions in respect of public or private TAC hearings”. As part of this, the Joint Committee has also recommended assessing the degree to which the proposals would make the Irish tax system more punitive compared to our European peers. The Joint Committee has also made a series of secondary recommendations, which include requests for further clarification on broader constitutional and procedural concerns should the Tánaiste progress the proposals in their current iteration. These secondary recommendations regarding the matter of taxpayer privacy are as follows:Significant clarifying detail should be provided in relation to the criteria which would determine when an Appeals Commissioner would grant a private hearing.The Department of Finance should explore how the default constitutional requirement for public hearings could be satisfied while also preserving taxpayer privacy.An alternative dispute resolution mechanism should be introduced which would precede recourse to the TAC.The Joint Committee has also made additional recommendations in relation to the following matters:Addressing concerns around the publication of the appellants’ details and whether this is a proportionate interference with their privacy rights.Addressing the risk that determinations might disclose information which would be deemed private in other contexts.Introducing a requirement making it mandatory for evidence to be given under an oath or affirmation. Addressing concerns about the financial resources of the TAC,  when compared to appellants with substantially more financial resources.Mandating the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council to produce official fiscal forecasts and expanding their endorsement function to policy costings. The Institute will continue engaging with government and other stakeholders throughout the summer as this matter continues to progress through the Oireachtas.

HMRC has asked us to share the below message about a growing area of confusion affecting some VAT‑registered businesses and their agents. HMRC is increasingly seeing VAT returns incorrectly submitted after the statutory due date when the 7th of the month falls on a weekend. In these cases, some taxpayers (or their agents) are relying on third‑party websites and AI which erroneously state that HMRC allows VAT returns to be submitted on the next working day if the statutory deadline falls on a Saturday or Sunday. Unfortunately, this is incorrect and is resulting in late returns and late payments which is leading to late submission penalty points and late payment penalties.  HMRC is planning to share more information on this in May’s Agent Update but has asked us to share the below ahead of this.  “Key messages  An increasing number of businesses and agents are submitting late VAT returns where the statutory due date falls on the weekend. They incorrectly think that the return can be submitted on the next working day. This is incorrect and results in late submission points or penalties. VAT return submission deadlines are fixed in law and do not move when they fall on a weekend. VAT returns can be submitted at weekends. If a business cannot submit at the weekend, it should submit before the due date. Agents should review any of their external guidance or website content and correct it where it suggests that VAT returns can be submitted on the next working day.”The Institute reiterates the importance of members and businesses ensuring they only utilise reliable sources of information when assisting taxpayers with compliance work. Filing tax and VAT returns late based on erroneous information and guidance not only results in the taxpayer incurring penalties and interest, but it also damages the client relationship and undermines the important role that tax agents play in driving compliance with UK tax legislation. 

A new Directive aimed to harmonise certain aspects of insolvency rules within the EU has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union and is now in force. These new rules aim to make the EU more attractive to cross-border investors by reducing the difficulty of differing national insolvency rules. Each Member States has until 22 January 2029 to transpose the Directive into national law.

The European Commission have issued a call for views on draft delegated regulation for the VSME. Companies in the value chain of a company subject to mandatory sustainability requirements often face requests for information from their reporting business partner. These value-companies include those with fewer than 1 000 employees on average during the financial year. This initiative aims to help value-chain companies and companies not subject to mandatory sustainability reporting requirements disclose sustainability-related information, thereby reducing their reporting burden.The consultation period is 4 weeks and responses are due by 3 June. Commission adoption is planned by the end of Q2 2026.