Taxes Consolidation Act, 1997 (Number 39 of 1997)
PART 30
Occupational Pension Schemes, Retirement Annuities, Purchased Life Annuities and Certain Pensions
CHAPTER 1
Occupational pension schemes
770 Interpretation and supplemental (Chapter 1).
[FA72 s13(1), (2) and (4); FA74 s86 and Sch2 PtII]
(1) In this Chapter, except where the context otherwise requires—
[3]>
“additional voluntary contributions” means voluntary contributions made to a scheme by an employee which are—
(i) contributions made under a rule or part of a rule, as the case may be, of a retirement benefits scheme (in this definition referred to as the “main scheme”) which provides specifically for the payment of members’ voluntary contributions, other than contributions made at the rate or rates specified for members’ contributions in the rules of the main scheme, or
(ii) contributions made under a separately arranged scheme for members’ voluntary contributions which is associated with the main scheme;
<[3]
[9]>
“administrator”, in relation to a retirement benefits scheme, means the person or persons having the management of the scheme, and references to the administrator of a scheme shall be deemed to include the person mentioned in section 772(2)(c);
<[9]
[9]>
“administrator”, in relation to a retirement benefits scheme, means the person or persons, established in a Member State of the European Communities [19]>or in the United Kingdom<[19], having the management of the scheme, and references to the administrator of a scheme shall be deemed to include the person mentioned in section 772(2)(c)(ii);
<[9]
“approved scheme” means a retirement benefits scheme for the time being approved by the Revenue Commissioners for the purposes of this Chapter;
“company” includes any body corporate or unincorporated body of persons other than a partnership;
[1]>
“approved retirement fund” has the meaning assigned to it by section 784A;
“approved minimum retirement fund” has the meaning assigned to it by section 784C;
<[1]
“director”, in relation to a company, includes—
(a) in the case of a company the affairs of which are managed by a board of directors or similar body, a member of that board or body,
(b) in the case of a company the affairs of which are managed by a single director or similar person, that director or person,
(c) in the case of a company the affairs of which are managed by the members themselves, a member of that company,
and includes a person who is to be or has been a director;
“employee”—
(a) in relation to a company, includes an officer of the company, any director of the company and any other person taking part in the management of the affairs of the company, and
(b) in relation to any employer, includes a person who is to be or has been an employee,
and “employer” and other cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;
“exempt approved scheme” has the meaning assigned to it by section 774;
“final remuneration” means the average annual remuneration of the last 3 years’ service;
[20]>
[10]>
“overseas pension scheme” means a retirement benefits scheme, other than a state social security scheme, which is—
[18]>
(a) operated or managed by an Institution for Occupational Retirement Provision as defined by Article 6(a) of Directive 2003/41/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 June 20031, and
<[18]
[18]>
(a) operated or managed by an institution for occupational retirement provision as defined by Article 6(1) of Directive (EU) 2016/2341 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 20162, and
<[18]
(b) established in a Member State of the European Communities, other than the State, which has given effect to that Directive in its national law;
<[10]
<[20]
[20]>
‘overseas pension scheme’ means a retirement benefits scheme, other than a state social security scheme, which—
(a) is operated or managed by an institution for occupational retirement provision as defined by Article 6(1) of Directive (EU) 2016/2341 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 201612 (in this definition referred to as ‘the Directive’) and is established in a Member State of the European Union, other than the State, which has given effect to the Directive in its national law, or
(b) is established in the United Kingdom and is subject to supervisory and regulatory arrangements at least equivalent to those applied under the Directive;
<[20]
“pension” includes annuity;
[13]>
[5]>
“pension adjustment order” means an order made in accordance with either section 12 of the Family Law Act, 1995, or section 17 of the Family Law (Divorce) Act, 1996;
<[5]
<[13]
[13]>
“pension adjustment order” means an order made in accordance with section 12 of the Family Law Act 1995, section 17 of the Family Law (Divorce) Act 1996, or section 121 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;
<[13]
[6]>
[2]>
“proprietary director” means a director who, either alone or together with his or her spouse and minor children is or was, at any time within three years of the date of—
(a) the specified normal retirement date,
(b) an earlier retirement date, where applicable, or
(c) leaving service,
the beneficial owner of shares which, when added to any shares held by the trustees of any settlement to which the director or his or her spouse had transferred assets, carry more than [4]>20 per cent<[4][4]>5 per cent<[4] of the voting rights in the company providing the benefits or in a company which controls that company;
<[2]
<[6]
[6]>
“proprietary director” means a director who, [14]>either alone or together with his or her spouse and minor children<[14][14]>either alone or together with his or her spouse and minor children or, as the case may be, his or her civil partner, his or her minor children and the minor children of his or her civil partner<[14] is or was, at any time within 3 years of the date of—
(i) the specified normal retirement date,
(ii) an earlier retirement date, where applicable,
(iii) leaving service, or
(iv) in the case of a pension or part of a pension payable in accordance with a pension adjustment order, the relevant date in relation to that order,
the beneficial owner of shares which, when added to any shares held by the trustees of any settlement to which the director or [15]>his or her spouse<[15][15]>his or her spouse or civil partner<[15] had transferred assets, carry more than 5 per cent of the voting rights in the company providing the benefits or in a company which controls that company;
<[6]
[8]>
“Personal Retirement Savings Account” or “PRSA” has the same meaning as in Chapter 2A of this Part;
<[8]
“relevant benefits” means any pension, lump sum, gratuity or other like benefit—
(a) given or to be given on retirement or on death or in anticipation of retirement or, in connection with past service, after retirement or death, or
(b) to be given on or in anticipation of or in connection with any change in the nature of the service of the employee in question,
but does not include any benefit which is to be afforded solely by reason of the death or disability of a person resulting from an accident arising out of or in the course of his or her office or employment and for no other reason;
[7]>
“relevant date” means, in relation to a pension adjustment order, the date on which [16]>the decree of separation or the decree of divorce,<[16][16]>the decree of separation, the decree of divorce, or the decree of dissolution,<[16] as the case may be, was granted, by reference to which the pension adjustment order in question was made;
<[7]
[11]>
“retirement benefits scheme” has the meaning assigned to it by section 771;
<[11]
“service” means service as an employee of the employer in question and other expressions, including “retirement”, shall be construed accordingly;
[12]>
“state social security scheme” means a system of mandatory protection put in place by the Government of a country or territory, other than the State, to provide a minimum level of retirement income or other benefits, the level of which is determined by that Government;
<[12]
“statutory scheme” means a retirement benefits scheme established by or under any enactment.
(2) Any reference in this Chapter to the provision of relevant benefits, or of a pension, for employees of an employer includes a reference to the provision of those benefits or that pension by means of a contract between the administrator or the employer and a third person.
(3) [17]>Schedule 23<[17][17]>Schedules 23 and 23C<[17] shall apply for the purposes of supplementing this Chapter and shall be construed as one with this Chapter.
[10]>
<[10]
[1]
Inserted by FA99 s19(1)(a)(i)(I). Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall apply as respects any retirement benefits scheme (within the meaning of section 771) approved on or after the 6th day of April, 1999.
[2]
Inserted by FA99 s19(1)(a)(i)(I). Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall apply as respects any retirement benefits scheme (within the meaning of section 771) approved on or after the 6th day of April, 1999.
[9]
Substituted by FA05 s21(1)(a)(i)(I). Applies as respects any retirement benefits scheme approved on or after 1 January 2005.
[10]
Inserted by FA05 s21(1)(a)(i)(II). Applies as respects any retirement benefits scheme approved on or after 1 January 2005.
[11]
Inserted by FA05 s21(1)(a)(i)(III). Applies as respects any retirement benefits scheme approved on or after 1 January 2005.
[12]
Inserted by FA05 s21(1)(a)(i)(IV). Applies as respects any retirement benefits scheme approved on or after 1 January 2005.
[19]
Inserted by the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Act 2020 s41(a). Comes into operation on 31 December 2020 as per S.I. No. 723 of 2020.