Welcome to our June Newsletter.

The summer is well and truly here, and despite the various turmoil’s in the world, it seems the Irish economy is proving
very resilient.

Are you a volunteer coach in a club? Could you have a tax liability?

Many of our clients assist coaching in Sports clubs from GAA, soccer, tennis, etc. Depending on the level of the team they coach, some payments may have been made to the person, usually described as travel or mileage expenses. Recently a club known to us has received a letter from Revenue, requesting the full name, address and PPS number of any person to whom they have paid any money to that was not returned under PAYE.

We are sure this is the start of a concerted program by Revenue to investigate the extent of these payments, and to ensure that payments that look more than re-imbursed expenses are taxed by the club under PAYE. In the past few years, a number of League of Ireland soccer clubs were targeted and this led to significant tax yields for Revenue, and more recently the interactions with Mayo and Galway GAA are ongoing.

It appears Revenue are now moving down the chain and sending multiple ‘fishing’ letters out. Please contact us if you or any of your staff may be affected by this. We recommend making revised income tax returns for at least 5 years BEFORE Revenue contact the club that you may be volunteering in, to avoid interest and to minimise any potential penalty.

Digital Discovery Grant

Enterprise Ireland are offering a grant of up to €5,000 to assist companies develop or improve your digital strategy. Essentially it can be used to fund services from an external qualified service provider. It could be that you examine your existing systems, processes and capabilities and through this identify your weaknesses and areas requiring attention or investment, and the grant could be used to part fund this. As ever the starting point is to complete a form. The maximum grant available is 80% of your spend (i.e. spend €6,300 receive €5,000). This is based on 7 days consultancy @ €900/day.

Click on www.digitalisation@enterprise-ireland.com to start the process. If you need any assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

A more efficient way of paying for Life Insurance?

Most of our clients have either Life Insurance or a Mortgage Protection policy to cover their mortgage in the event they die. Neither of these policies are allowable against tax.

This is where Pension Term Assurance and Executive Pension Term Assurance come into play, offering a more tax efficient solution.

What are they?

Simply put, these are life insurance policies taken out through your pension structure. These costs are paid for by the self-employed person or the company on behalf of a director or an employee.

• Pension Term Assurance is typically arranged by an individual through their personal pension plan.
• Executive Pension Term Assurance is set up by an employer for an employee (often a director or key employee) through an executive pension plan.

Why consider them? The compelling benefits:

1. Tax Relief on Premiums: This is a significant advantage. Because the premiums are paid as a contribution to your pension scheme, they generally qualify for tax relief at your marginal rate. For example, if you pay tax at 40%, for every €100 of premium, the net cost to you could be just €60. This makes it a highly tax efficient way to secure life cover.
2. Financial Security for Your Family: The primary benefit is the financial protection it provides to your dependents. Should you pass away within the term of the policy, a lump sum benefit is paid out. This can help your family cover essential living expenses, outstanding debts like a mortgage, and provide financial stability during a difficult time.
3. Ring-fenced Benefits: The proceeds from a Pension Term Assurance policy are generally paid directly to your nominated beneficiaries and do not form part of your estate for inheritance tax purposes (subject to certain conditions and thresholds). This can provide a more efficient transfer of wealth to your loved ones.
4. Flexibility and Choice: You can typically choose the level of cover required and the term of the policy to align with your individual circumstances and family needs. For instance, you might choose a term that covers the years you have a young family or until your mortgage is paid off.
5. For Employers – Attracting and Retaining Talent: Executive Pension Term Assurance can be a valuable tool for businesses. Offering this benefit to key employees demonstrates a commitment to their well-being and can be a powerful way to attract and retain top talent. It shows you care about their families’ security as well.
   If you wish to explore how this could benefit you, we suggest you contact your Pension/Financial advisor and explore your personal circumstances. We can then assist in ensuring you receive the correct tax relief.

Thinking of installing Solar panels in your business?

As electricity prices continue to remain high, and with the capital cost of installing solar panels falling, it may now be a good time to consider installing solar panels at your business premises, subject to the various permissions needed.

The Non-Domestic Microgen Grant (NDMG) provides financial assistance to help businesses and other sectors to install solar PV panels to generate electricity on site. This technology reduces commercial electricity costs and increases security of supply, while enhancing a positive sustainability image. Grant funding is available for systems up to a maximum 1000kWp. The grant amount you receive is based on the standard output of your solar PV system. A solar PV system with an output of a maximum 1000kWp can be grant funded through the scheme. If the system installed is larger than 1,000kWp, then the applicant may apply for the maximum grant offering of €162,600* and this is available for systems from 1kWp to a maximum of 1000kWp. Here’s a table of the typical grants available based on installing a 1kWp to a 20kWp system:

If you wish to explore this grant, your starting point is to log on to: https://www.seai.ie/grants/businessgrants/commercial-solar-pv.ie