31E. Stamp duty on certain acquisitions of residential property

(1) In this section—

“Act of 1997” means the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997;

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“Act of 1992” means the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992;

“Act of 2009” means the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009;

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“apartment block” means a multi-storey residential property that comprises, or will comprise, not less than 3 apartments with grouped or common access;

“arrangement” includes any agreement, understanding, scheme, transaction or series of transactions;

“connected” shall be construed in accordance with section 10 of the Act of 1997;

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“home reversion agreement” has the same meaning as it has in Part V of the Central Bank Act 1997;

“home reversion firm” has the same meaning as it has in Part V of the Central Bank Act 1997;

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“household” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2009;

“housing authority” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 1992;

“housing authority lease” means a lease entered into by a housing authority under section 19 of the Act of 2009;

“qualified household” means a household that has been determined, in accordance with a social housing assessment, to be qualified for social housing support;

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“relevant residential unit” shall be construed in accordance with subsection (5);

“residential unit” means residential property situated in the State comprising an individual dwelling.

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“social housing assessment” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2009;

“social housing support” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2009.

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(2) Subject to subsection (3), for the purposes of this section, a person shall be treated as acquiring a residential unit—

(a) in the case of a conveyance or transfer on sale of the residential unit, on the date of execution of the conveyance or transfer, as the case may be,

(b) in the case of a lease in respect of the residential unit for a definite term exceeding 35 years, on the date of execution of the lease,

(c) in the case of an instrument, referred to in section 29(2), effecting the sale of land on which the residential unit has been built or is in the course of being built, on the date of execution of the instrument,

(d) in the case of a conveyance or transfer, referred to in section 30(1), operating as a voluntary disposition inter vivos of the residential unit, on the date of execution of the conveyance or transfer, as the case may be,

(e) in the case of a contract or agreement, referred to in section 31(1), for the sale of any equitable estate or interest in the residential unit, on the date of execution of the contract or agreement, as the case may be,

(f) in the case of an instrument, referred to in section 33(1), whereby the residential unit is conveyed or transferred in contemplation of a sale of the residential unit, on the date of execution of the instrument, and

(g) in the case of an instrument, referred to in section 37, effecting a conveyance or transfer of the residential unit in exchange for any other property, on the date of execution of the instrument.

(3) Where the acquisition of a residential unit is effected by more than one instrument referred to in subsection (2), the residential unit shall be treated as being acquired on the earliest to occur of the dates on which, under that subsection, it is so treated as being acquired.

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(4) In this section, a reference to acquisition shall include a reference to acquisition by way of a conveyance, transfer, lease, instrument, contract or agreement referred to in subsection (2).

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(4) In this section, a reference to acquisition shall include a reference to—

(a) acquisition by way of a conveyance, transfer, lease, instrument, contract or agreement referred to in subsection (2), and

(b) acquisition by way of a change in the person or persons having direct or indirect control by virtue of a conveyance or transfer on sale of stocks, marketable securities, units or interests referred to in subsection (9).

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(4A) In this section, a reference to acquisition of a residential unit shall include a reference to acquisition of a partial estate or interest in a residential unit.

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(5) Where—

(a) a person ^[11]>(in this subsection and subsection (6) referred to as the ‘first-mentioned person’)^{<[11] [11]>}(in this subsection and subsections (6) and (7A) referred to as the ‘first-mentioned person’)^<[11] acquires a residential unit on or after 20 May 2021, and

(b) the total of—

(i) the residential units acquired by the first-mentioned person or a person connected with that person in the 12 months immediately preceding the day on which the residential unit referred to in paragraph (a) is acquired (in this subsection referred to as the ‘relevant day’),

(ii) the residential unit referred to in paragraph (a), and

(iii) any other residential units acquired by the first-mentioned person or a person connected with that person on the relevant day,

is greater than or equal to 10 residential units,

each of the residential units comprised in that total shall be a relevant residential unit.

(6) For the purposes of subsection (5), in a case in which the firstmentioned person or a person connected with the first-mentioned person referred to in subsection (5)(b)(i) or (iii) is an individual, no account shall be taken of the residential units acquired by the connected person where—

(a) the first-mentioned person and the connected person are not acting in concert in relation to the acquisition of those units, and

(b) the acquisition of any of those units is not part of an arrangement, one of the main purposes of which is to avoid the unit being a relevant residential unit.

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(7) For the purposes of subsection (5), no account shall be taken of a residential unit in an apartment block.

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(7) For the purposes of subsection (5), no account shall be taken of—

(a) a residential unit in an apartment block, or

(b) a residential unit acquired by a home reversion firm by way of a home reversion agreement.

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(7A) For the purposes of subsection (5), when calculating the total number of residential units acquired, account shall be taken of any partial estate or interest in a residential unit, expressible as a fraction of an estate or interest in the residential unit, acquired by the first-mentioned person and any person connected with that person.

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(8) Where—

(a) a person acquires, on or after the day after the date of the passing of the Finance (Covid-19 and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021, a residential unit by way of a conveyance or transfer on sale of the residential unit,

(b) on the same day as the residential unit is acquired by the person, the person enters into a housing authority lease in respect of the residential unit, and

(c) the lease is entered into by the housing authority for the purpose of the provision of social housing support to a qualified household, for the purposes of subsection (5), no account shall be taken of the residential unit.

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(8A) For the purposes of subsection (8)(b), a person shall not be regarded as entering into a housing authority lease on the same day as the residential unit concerned is acquired by the person where the residential unit was subject to a housing authority lease immediately prior to that day.

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(9) This subsection applies to—

(a) stocks or marketable securities in a company (within the meaning of section 4 of the Act of 1997),

(b) units (within the meaning of section 88(1)(a)) in an IREF (within the meaning of section 31C), or

(c) interests in a partnership, being a partner’s share or interest in a partnership,

that derive value, directly or indirectly, from a residential unit.

(10) For the purposes of subsection (9), the reference to deriving value indirectly from a residential unit shall include value that is derived from other stocks, marketable securities, units or interests, as the case may be, to which that subsection applies.

(11) In calculating the part of the value of the stocks, marketable securities, units or interests, as the case may be, that is derived, directly or indirectly, from a residential unit for the purposes of subsection (9)—

(a) account shall not be taken of any arrangement—

(i) that involves a transfer of money or other assets, apart from a residential unit, from a person who is connected with the company, IREF or partnership, as the case may be, in which those stocks, marketable securities, units or interests are held,

(ii) that is made before a conveyance or transfer on sale of stocks, marketable securities, units or interests to which subsection (9) applies, and

(iii) the main purpose, or one of the main purposes, of which is the avoidance of liability to any tax or duty, and

(b) regard shall be had to the market value of the residential unit from which the value is derived.

(12) Where—

(a) there exists a conveyance or transfer on sale of stocks, marketable securities, units or interests to which subsection (9) applies, and

(b) such conveyance or transfer on sale results in a change in the person or persons having direct or indirect control over the residential unit concerned,

the conveyance or transfer on sale concerned shall be chargeable to stamp duty—

(i) under paragraph (1) of the heading ‘CONVEYANCE or TRANSFER on sale of any property other than stocks or marketable securities or a policy of insurance or a policy of life insurance’ in Schedule 1 as respects that part of the value of the stocks, marketable securities, units or interests, as the case may be, that is derived from a relevant residential unit, and

(ii) under the heading ‘CONVEYANCE or TRANSFER on sale of any stocks or marketable securities’ in Schedule 1 as respects that part of the value of the stocks, marketable securities, units or interests, as the case may be, that is not derived from a relevant residential unit.

(13) Where—

(a) there is a change in the ownership of a company, IREF or partnership that results in a change in the person or persons having direct or indirect control over a residential unit, and

(b) any contract or agreement giving direct or indirect effect to such change is not otherwise chargeable to stamp duty,

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then the contract or agreement shall be treated as a conveyance or transfer on sale of stocks, marketable securities, units or interests for the purposes of subsection (12).

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then the contract or agreement shall be treated as a conveyance or transfer on sale of stocks, marketable securities, units or interests for the purposes of subsection (12), but paragraph (ii) of that subsection shall not apply in respect of the contract or agreement as so treated

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(14) Where stocks or marketable securities, units or interests to which subsection (9) applies were owned at one time by one person, or by persons who are acting in concert or who are connected persons, and are conveyed or transferred by that person or those persons in parts—

(a) to another person, or

(b) to other persons who are acting in concert or who are connected persons,

whether or not on the same or different occasions, the several conveyances or transfers shall, for the purposes of this section, be treated as a single conveyance or transfer.

(15) For the purposes of subsection (5), the person or persons acquiring direct or indirect control over a residential unit in the circumstances described in subsection (12) or (13), as the case may be, shall be treated as acquiring the residential unit with the date of the acquisition being, as the case may be, the date of—

(a) the execution of the conveyance or transfer on sale, or

(b) the execution of the contract or agreement.

(16) Any stamp duty chargeable in respect of a relevant residential unit and any associated interest or other monetary penalty amount which is due and unpaid shall be and remain a charge on the relevant residential unit to which it relates and, notwithstanding the Statute of Limitations 1957, shall continue to apply without a time limit until such time as it is paid in full.

(17) This subsection applies to—

(a) a relevant residential unit in respect of the acquisition of which—

(i) a binding contract was entered into before 20 May 2021, and

(ii) the instrument effecting the acquisition is executed before 20 August 2021 and is accompanied by a statement, in such form as the Commissioners may specify, certifying that the instrument was executed solely in pursuance of a binding contract entered into before 20 May 2021,

and

(b) a relevant residential unit the acquisition of which was effected before 20 May 2021.

(18) The furnishing of an incorrect certificate for the purposes of subsection (17)(a)(ii) shall be deemed to constitute the delivery of an incorrect statement for the purposes of section 1078 of the Act of 1997.

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(19) Sections 82(1), 82C(2) and 88(1)(b) shall not apply where the conveyance, transfer or lease concerned effects the acquisition of a relevant residential unit.

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(19) Where a conveyance, transfer or lease effects the acquisition of a relevant residential unit, sections 82(1), 82C(2) and 88(1)(b) shall not apply as respects stamp duty that is chargeable on the conveyance, transfer or lease in respect of the consideration which is attributable to the relevant residential unit.

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(20) This subsection applies where a residential unit (in subsection (21) referred to as the ‘first-mentioned residential unit’) is not a relevant residential unit on the date on which it is acquired but becomes a relevant residential unit as a consequence of the acquisition of another residential unit on a date falling after that date (in subsection (21) referred to as the ‘later date’).

(21) Where—

(a) subsection (20) applies, and

(b) the first-mentioned residential unit is not a relevant residential unit to which subsection (17) applies,

section 2(1) shall apply in respect of the additional stamp duty that has become chargeable by virtue of the first-mentioned residential unit becoming a relevant residential unit as if the instrument effecting the acquisition of the first-mentioned residential unit was executed on the later date.

(22) Where subsection (12) or (13) applies and the conveyance or transfer on sale, or the contract or agreement, as the case may be, referred to in those subsections would also be chargeable to stamp duty under section 31C or 31D, then those sections shall operate to charge stamp duty only as respects that part of the value of the stocks, marketable securities, units or interests, as the case may be, that is not derived from a relevant residential unit.

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(23) A reference in subsection (9), (12) or (13) to a residential unit shall not include a reference to a residential unit in an apartment block.

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