653BB Notice to provide records

Summary

This section provides that Revenue may issue a notice to a chargeable person which requires that person to provide records to Revenue demonstrating that a property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in a chargeable period. Where such records are not provided, the section provides that Revenue can deem the property to be a vacant property for the purposes of vacant homes tax.

Details

(1) This subsection defines certain terms for the purposes of the section. These are:

“bill” means an account issued by a creditor to a debtor;

“short term letting” has the same meaning as it has in section 3A of the Planning and Development Act 2000. Section 3A refers to the letting of a house, or part of a house, for any period not exceeding 14 days. Section 3A specifically includes a licence that permits the licensee to enter and reside in the house, or part thereof, for any such period in consideration of the making by any person (whether or not the licensee) of a payment or payments to the licensor;

“unit” means a unit of electricity or a unit of gas that is equal to a kilowatt hour where one kilowatt hour is the amount of energy used by a 1 kW appliance for one hour;

“utility provider” means:

• a person that is licensed under section 14(1) of the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 to supply electricity or to discharge the functions of the operator of the distribution system in the state, or
• a person that holds a natural gas licence under section 16(1) of the Gas (Interim) Regulation Act 2002.

(2) Revenue may serve a notice in writing on a chargeable person in relation to a residential property which requires that person to provide records demonstrating that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in a chargeable period. A notice served under this section will specify the timeframe within which the records are to be provided to Revenue.

(3) The records may include:

• an electricity bill or a gas bill demonstrating the units consumed at the residential property in the chargeable period
• a bill from a person who holds a permit to collect waste under the Waste Management (Collection Permit) Regulations 2007 showing details of the waste collected from the property in the chargeable period
• evidence of all short-term lettings of the property during the chargeable period
• a statutory declaration by the chargeable person that the property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period.

(4) If Revenue is not satisfied that the records provided by the chargeable person demonstrate that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in a chargeable period, Revenue shall serve a notice in writing. The notice will:

• inform the chargeable person that Revenue has decided that the records do not demonstrate that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period,
• provide the chargeable person with an opportunity to provide further records to demonstrate that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period, within a time frame specified in the notice.
• inform the chargeable person that the residential property will be deemed to have been in use as a dwelling for less than 30 days in the chargeable period where Revenue decides that:
  • the records provided by the chargeable person pursuant to the notice issued under subsection (2), and
  • any additional records provided in response to a notice issued under this subsection,
  
  do not demonstrate to the satisfaction of Revenue that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period.

(5) If the chargeable person does not provide any records to Revenue in response to a notice issued under subsection (2), Revenue will serve a notice in writing on the chargeable person.

This notice will:

• provide the chargeable person with a further opportunity to provide records which demonstrate that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period, and
• inform the chargeable person that the residential property will be deemed to have been in use as a dwelling for less than 30 days in the chargeable period where:
  • Revenue decides that the records provided in response to a notice issued under this subsection do not demonstrate to the satisfaction of Revenue that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period, or
  • where the chargeable person does not provide any records to Revenue pursuant to a notice issued under this subsection.

(6) A residential property will be deemed to have been in use as a dwelling for less than 30 days in a chargeable period where:

• Revenue decide that the records provided in response to a notice issued under subsections (2), (4) or (5) do not demonstrate to their satisfaction that the residential property was in use as a dwelling for 30 days or more in the chargeable period, or
• where the chargeable person does not provide any records to Revenue pursuant to a notice issued under subsections (2)

and Revenue will serve a notice on a chargeable person in writing stating this.

(7) Where a residential property is deemed to have been in use as a dwelling for less than 30 days in a chargeable period by virtue of a decision of Revenue, the chargeable person may appeal the decision to the Appeal Commissioners in accordance with section 949I within a period of 30 days of the date of the notice issued under subsection (6).

Relevant Date: Finance Act 2024