Revenue Note for Guidance

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Revenue Note for Guidance

235A Exemption for certain sporting national governing bodies

Summary

This section provides that Olympic Federation of Ireland or Paralympic Ireland or is recognised by Sport Ireland as a National Governing Body (NGB). The NGB is a recognised as an approved sporting body and is as “Type C” in the Governance Code for Sport list held by Sport Ireland and has a valid tax clearance certificate. The exemption applies to income which the body can hold for up to ten years provided the income is ultimately applied for certain qualifying purposes, including capital projects, to purchase certain sporting equipment, to support elite athletes in competitive sport, and to support the participation of women and people with disabilities in sport.

Details

Definitions

(1) “Appropriate tax” “deposit” “relevant deposit taker” and “relevant interest” have the same meaning as in Chapter 4 of Part 8.

“disability” in relation to an individual means a substantial restriction in the capacity of the individual to carry on a profession, business, or occupation in the State or to participate in social or cultural life in the state by reason of an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual impairment.

“elite athlete” means an individual who is in receipt of financial support provided by Sport Ireland under the scheme commonly known and referred to as the Sport Ireland Carding Scheme, or someone who competes at senior level and is a participant in a high-performance training programme of a relevant national governing body, that receives funding from Sport Ireland through the Sport Ireland High Performance Programme Funding.

“Maximum amount” means €100,000,000

“Minister” means the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media

“Relevant national governing body” means

  1. Olympic Federation of Ireland or Paralympic Ireland or a national governing body for sport
  2. is listed as “Type C” organisation on the Sport Ireland “Register of Organisations” in Compliance with the Governance Code of Sport
  3. is approved for the purposes of this section by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

has been issued with a tax clearance certificate in accordance with section 1095 and such tax certificate has not been rescinded under subsection (3A) of that section.

“Qualifying project” is defined as including projects involving-

  1. purchasing, constructing or refurbishing a building or structure provided by the NGB for sporting or recreation activities,
  2. purchasing land for use by the NGB in providing sporting or recreation facilities,
  3. purchasing permanently based equipment (excluding personal equipment) for use by the NGB in providing such facilities,
  4. improving playing pitches, surfaces or facilities of the relevant NGB,
  5. repaying money borrowed (and paying interest on such money) by the NGB on or after 1 January 2025 for any of the above mentioned purposes,
  6. purchasing sports equipment approved by the Minister as eligible for funding under the Community Sports Facilities Fund and that is used by the NGB in its respective sport,
  7. measures to support elite athletes in achieving excellence in “competitive sport” as defined in section 235 TCA,
  8. measures that promote participation in sport by women, and
  9. measures that promote the participation in sport by people with a disability

(2) Subsection provides for the exemption from tax

  1. (2a) that subject to paragraphs (b) and (c), the income of a relevant NGB will be exempt where it is spent on a qualifying project within 10 years of the year in which it was received.
  2. (2b) provides that the exemption will not apply to income used by a relevant NGB to purchase property which is not used for sporting purposes
  3. (2c) disapplies the exemption to any income in excess of the “maximum amount” which is defined in subsection (1) as €100,000,000.

(3) Deposit Interest Retention Tax (DIRT) will be refundable for deposits held by the NGB, where DIRT has been paid in respect of those deposits under this measure.

(4) The Minister may approve an NGB as a national governing body provided it satisfies the conditions in paragraph (a) to (e) of the definition of a “relevant NGB”.

(5) The Minister certifies that a project to be undertaken by a relevant NGB is a “qualifying project” for the purposes of the section. The application submitted by the relevant NGB must be in such form and contain such information as the Minister directs. The NGB must apply to the Minister for this certificate. The Minister may also revoke any such certificate.

Relevant Date: Finance Act 2024