PART V

Value-Added Tax

76. —This Part (other than section 90, in so far as it amends the definition of “manufacturer” in section 1 (1) of the Principal Act) shall come into operation on the 3rd day of September, 1973.

77. —In this Part “the Principal Act” means the Value-Added Tax Act, 1972 .

78. —Section 3 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1):

“(1A) Where—

(a) goods of a kind specified in paragraph (xii) of the Second Schedule are supplied in a form suitable for human consumption without further preparation,

(b) the supply is made—

(i) by means of a vending machine, or

(ii) in the course of operating a hotel, restaurant, cafe, refreshment house, canteen, establishment licensed for the sale of intoxicating liquor, catering business or similar business, or

(iii) in the course of operating any other business in connection with the carrying on of which facilities are provided for the consumption of the goods supplied, and

(c) apart from this subsection, the supply would constitute a delivery of the goods,

the supply shall, for all the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be a rendering of services and not a delivery of goods.”.

79. —Section 5 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution for subsection (2) of the following subsection :

“(2) (a) Services, whether or not rendered for a consideration or for a separate consideration, which, apart from this subsection, would not be regarded as rendered by a person in the course of business, shall, subject to and to the extent provided by regulations, be regarded as rendered by him in the course of business if they are connected with any business activity in which he engages.

(b) For the purposes of this subsection and section 32, services shall be regarded as connected with a business activity in which a person engages if he provides facilities for, or contributes in whole or part towards the cost of, rendering them.”, and

(b) by the insertion in subsection (5) after paragraph (b) of the following paragraph :

“(c) This subsection shall not apply to a supply of goods of a kind specified in paragraph (xii) of the Second Schedule.”.

80. —Section 11 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following paragraphs for paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (1) :

“(a) 6.75 per cent. of the appropriate amount of any consideration, other than consideration to which paragraph (b) applies, which relates to the delivery of goods of a kind specified in Part I of the Third Schedule or the rendering of services of a kind specified in Part II of that Schedule,

(b) 11.11 per cent. of the appropriate amount of any consideration which relates to the promotion of dances and the delivery (if any) of goods of a kind specified in paragraphs (vi) to (viii) and (xii) to (xv) of the Second Schedule or in Part I of the Third Schedule and the rendering (if any) of services which, but for this paragraph, would be chargeable at the rate specified in paragraph (a) delivered or rendered in connection with dances, where payment of the consideration for such delivery or rendering is included in the consideration in respect of admission to the dance or is a condition of admission,”,

(b) by the substitution in subsection (1) (c) of “36.75” for “30.26”,

(c) by the substitution in subsection (1) (e) of “19.50” for “16.37”,

(d) by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (1):

“(1A) (a) The rate at which tax shall be chargeable shall, in relation to tax chargeable under section 2 (1) (a), be the rate for the time being in force at the time at which the tax becomes due in accordance with subsection (1) or (2), as may be appropriate, of section 19.

(b) Goods or services which are specifically excluded from any paragraph of a Schedule shall, unless the contrary intention is expressed, be regarded as excluded from every other paragraph of that Schedule, and shall not be regarded as specified in that Schedule.

(1B) (a) On receipt of an application in writing from an accountable person, the Revenue Commissioners shall, in accordance with regulations

and after such consultation (if any) as may seem to them to be necessary with such person or body of persons as in their opinion may be of assistance to them, make a determination concerning—

(i) whether an activity of any particular kind carried on by the person is an exempted activity, or

(ii) the rate at which tax is chargeable in relation to the delivery by the person of goods of any kind, the delivery of goods in any particular circumstances or the rendering by the person of services of any kind.

(b) The Revenue Commissioners may, whenever they consider it expedient to do so, in accordance with regulations and after such consultation (if any) as may seem to them to be necessary with such person or body of persons as in their opinion may be of assistance to them, make a determination concerning—

(i) whether an activity of any particular kind is an exempted activity, or

(ii) the rate at which tax is chargeable in relation to the delivery of goods of any kind, the delivery of goods in any particular circumstances or the rendering of services of any kind.

(c) A determination under this subsection shall have effect for all the purposes of this Act, in relation to an accountable person who makes an application therefor, as on and from the date upon which particulars of the determination are communicated to him in accordance with paragraph (e) (i) and, in relation to any other person, as on and from the date of publication of the determination in the Iris Oifigiúil.

(d) The Revenue Commissioners shall not make a determination under this section concerning any matter which has been determined on

appeal under this Act or which is for the time being governed by an order under section 6 (2) or 11 (8), and shall not be required to make such a determination in relation to any of the matters referred to in an application under paragraph (a) if—

(i) a previous determination has been published in regard to the matter, or

(ii) in their opinion the subject matter of the application is sufficiently free from doubt as not to warrant the making and publication of a determination.

(e) (i) A determination under paragraph (a) shall, as soon as may be after the making thereof, be communicated to the person who made the application therefor by the service on him by the Revenue Commissioners of a notice containing particulars of the determination.

(ii) A determination under paragraph (a) may and a determination under paragraph (b) shall be published in the Iris Oifigiúil and, in that event, it shall also be published in at least one daily newspaper published in the State.

(f) A person, aggrieved by a determination under paragraph (a) made pursuant to an application by him, may, on giving notice in writing to the Revenue Commissioners within the period of twenty-one days beginning on the date of service on him of notice of the determination in accordance with paragraph (e) (i), appeal to the Appeal Commissioners.

(g) Any accountable person who, in the course of business, delivers goods or renders services of a kind or in circumstances specified in a determination under paragraph (a) or (b) may, on giving notice in writing to the Revenue Commissioners within the period of twenty-one days beginning on the date of the publication of the determination in the Iris Oifigiúil, appeal to the Appeal Commissioners.”,

(e) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (4):

“(4A) Where—

(a) goods of a kind specified in paragraph (xii) of the Second Schedule are used by a person in the course of the rendering by him of taxable services, and

(b) the goods are supplied by the person to whom the services are rendered or by any other person other than the person by whom the services are rendered,

the person who renders the taxable services shall be deemed to have supplied the goods so used in the course of business and shall be liable, in addition to any other liability imposed on him under this Act, to pay tax on the value of the goods so used at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (a).”, and

(f) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a) of subsection (8):

“(a) The Minister may by order vary the Second or Third Schedules by adding to or deleting therefrom descriptions of goods or services of any kind or by varying any description of goods or services for the time being specified therein, and may, in like manner, vary the Fourth Schedule by deleting therefrom descriptions of goods of any kind or by varying any description of goods for the time being specified therein, but no order shall be made under this section for the purpose of increasing any of the rates of tax or extending the classes of activities or goods in respect of which tax is for the time being chargeable.”.

81. —Section 12 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1)—

“(1A) (a) A person who, by election or in accordance with the provisions of section 8 (4) is deemed to become an accountable

person, shall, in accordance with regulations, be entitled, in computing the amount of tax payable by him in respect of the first taxable period for which he is so deemed to be an accountable person, to treat as tax deductible under subsection (1) such part of the value of the stock-in-trade (within the meaning of section 34) held by him immediately before the commencement of that taxable period as could reasonably be regarded as the amount which he would be entitled to claim under the said subsection (1) if he had been an accountable person at the time of the delivery to him of such stock-in-trade.

(b) No claim shall lie under this subsection for a deduction for the tax relating to any stock-in-trade (within the meaning of section 34) if, and to the extent that, a deduction under subsection (1) could be claimed apart from this subsection.

(c) This subsection shall have effect in relation to taxable periods commencing on or after the 3rd day of September, 1973.”, and

(b) by the deletion in subsection (1) of paragraph (e).

82. —Section 19 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (3):

“(3) (a) Within nine days immediately after the tenth day of the month immediately following a taxable period, an accountable person shall furnish to the Collector-General a true and correct return prepared in accordance with regulations of the amount of tax which became due under section 2 (1) (a) by him during the taxable period and the amount, if any, which may be deducted in accordance with section 12 in computing the amount of tax payable by him in respect of such taxable period, and shall at the same time remit to the Collector-General the amount of tax, if any, payable by him in respect of such taxable period.

(b) Paragraph (a) shall be construed in relation to the taxable period commencing on the first day of July, 1973, as if the reference therein to nine days immediately after the tenth day of the month immediately following a taxable period were a reference to nine days immediately after the tenth day of the month in which the taxable period ends.”.

83. —Section 26 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution in subsection (1) of “18 (2)” for “18”, and

(b) by the insertion after subsection (3) of the following subsection:

“(3A) A person who does not comply with section 18 (3) shall be liable to a penalty of £100.”.

84. —Section 27 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (5):

“(5) A person who fraudulently or negligently—

(a) issues an invoice in which an amount of tax is stated, in such circumstances that, apart from his liability under subsection (5) or (6) of section 17, the said amount does not represent the amount of tax (if any) which becomes due by him in respect of the transaction to which the invoice relates, or

(b) issues a credit note showing an amount of tax other than that properly applicable to the transaction to which the credit note relates,

shall be liable to a penalty of—

(i) £100, and

(ii) the amount, or, in the case of fraud, twice the amount of his liability under the said subsection (5) or (6), as the case may be, in respect of the issue of any such invoice or credit note.”.

85. —Section 32 (1) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of the following paragraphs after paragraph (x):

“(xx) the relief (if any) to be given to an accountable person in respect of tax borne or paid by him on stock-in-trade held by him immediately before the commencement of the first taxable period for which he is deemed to become an accountable person;

(xxx) the manner in which a determination may be made for the purposes of section 11 (1B);”.

86. —Section 35 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (1) of the following subsection:

“(1A) (a) Where, after the making of an agreement for the delivery of goods or the rendering of services and before the date on which under subsection (1) or (2), as may be appropriate, of section 19 any tax in respect of the transaction would, if the proviso to the said subsection (1) were disregarded, fall due, there is a change in the amount of tax chargeable on the delivery or rendering in question, then, in the absence of agreement to the contrary, there shall be added to or deducted from the total amount of the consideration and any tax stated separately under the agreement an amount equal to the amount of the change in the tax chargeable.

(b) References in this subsection to a change in the amount of tax chargeable on the delivery of goods or the rendering of services include references to a change to or from a situation in which no tax is being charged on the delivery or rendering.”.

87. —The First Schedule to the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution for paragraph (ix) of the following paragraph:

“(ix) services of a medical or educational nature rendered by hospitals, nursing homes, schools and similar establishments; and catering services rendered—

(a) to patients of a hospital or nursing home in the hospital or nursing home, and

(b) to students of a school in the school;” and

(b) by the insertion after paragraph (xxiii) of the following paragraphs:

“(xxiv) delivery of live horses;

(xxv) delivery of live greyhounds;

(xxvi) the natural or artificial insemination of livestock.”.

88. —The Second Schedule to the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (vii):

“(vii) animal feeding stuff, excluding feeding stuff which is packaged, sold or otherwise designated for the use of dogs, cats, cage birds or domestic pets;”,

and

(b) by the insertion of the following paragraphs after paragraph (x)

“(xi) life saving services provided by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution including the organisation and maintenance of the lifeboat service;

(xii) food and drink of a kind used for human consumption, excluding—

(a) beverages chargeable with any duty of customs or excise specifically charged on spirits, beer, wine, cider, perry or Irish wine, and preparations thereof,

(b) other manufactured beverages, including fruit juices and bottled waters, and syrups, concentrates, essences, powders, crystals or other products for the preparation of beverages, but not including—

(I) tea and preparations thereof,

(II) cocoa, coffee and chicory and other roasted coffee substitutes, and preparations and extracts thereof,

(III) preparations and extracts of meat, yeast, egg or milk,

(c) ice cream, ice lollipops, water ices and similar frozen products, and prepared mixes and powders for making such products,

(d) (I) chocolates, sweets and similar confectionery (including drained, glacé or crystallised fruits), biscuits, crackers and wafers of all kinds, and all confectionery and bakery products other than bread,

(II) for the purposes of this paragraph “bread” means food for human consumption manufactured by baking dough composed exclusively of a mixture of cereal flour and any one or more of the ingredients mentioned in the following subclauses in quantities not exceeding the limitation, if any, specified for each ingredient—

(1) yeast or other leavening or aerating agent, salt, malt extract, milk, water, gluten,

(2) fat, sugar and bread improver, subject to the limitation that the weight of any ingredient specified in this subclause shall not exceed 2 per cent. of the weight of flour included in the dough,

(3) dried fruit, subject to the limitation that the weight thereof shall not exceed 10 per cent. of the weight of flour included in the dough,

other than food packaged for sale as a unit (not being a unit designated as containing only food specifically for babies) containing two or more slices, segments, sections or other similar pieces, having a crust over substantially the whole of their outside surfaces, being a crust formed in the course of baking or toasting,

(e) any of the following when supplied for human consumption without further preparation, namely, potato crisps, potato sticks, potato chips, potato puffs and similar products made from potato, or from potato flour or from potato starch, popcorn, and salted or roasted nuts whether or not in shells;

(xiii) medicine of a kind used for human oral consumption;

(xiv) medicine of a kind used for animal oral consumption, excluding medicine which is packaged, sold or otherwise designated for the use of dogs, cats, cage birds or domestic pets;

(xv) seeds, plants, spores, bulbs, tubers, tuberous roots, corms, crowns and rhizomes, of a kind used for sowing in order to produce food;

(xvi) goods of different kinds which are packaged for sale as a unit (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as the package) and in relation to which all the following conditions are satisfied—

(a) the package consists of goods in relation to the delivery of some of which for a separate consideration tax would be chargeable at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (d), and in

relation to the delivery of the remainder of which for a separate consideration, tax would be chargeable at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (e),

(b) the consideration for delivery is referable to the package as a whole and not to the different kinds of goods included therein, and

(c) the total tax-exclusive value of the goods included in the package, in relation to the delivery of which for a separate consideration tax would be chargeable at the rate specified in the said section 11 (1) (e), does not exceed 50 per cent. of the total tax-exclusive consideration for the package or 2½ new pence, whichever is the lesser.”.

89. —The Third Schedule to the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution in Part I of the Schedule of the following paragraph for paragraph (i):

“(i) Animal medicine excluding medicine—

(a) of a kind specified in paragraph (xiv) of the Second Schedule, or

(b) which is packaged, sold or otherwise designated for the use of dogs, cats, cage birds or domestic pets;”,

(b) by the addition to Part I of the Schedule of the following paragraph:

“(xxxii) goods of different kinds which are packaged for sale as a unit (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as the package) and in relation to which all the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) the package consists of goods in relation to the delivery of some of which for a separate consideration tax would be chargeable at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (a), and in relation to the delivery of the remainder of which for such a consideration, tax would be chargeable at any other rate or rates,

(b) the consideration for delivery is referable to the package as a whole and not to the different kinds of goods included therein, and

(c) the total tax-exclusive value of the goods included in the package, in relation to the delivery of which for a separate consideration or separate considerations tax would be chargeable at a rate or rates other than the rate specified in the said section 11 (1) (a), does not exceed 50 per cent. of the total tax-exclusive consideration for the package or 2½ new pence, whichever is the lesser,”, and

(c) by the addition to Part II of the Schedule of the following paragraph:

“(vii) the hiring to a person under a contract in writing, other than a contract of a kind referred to in section 3 (1) (b), entered into before the 24th day of October, 1972, of movable goods in the possession of the person on the 1st day of November, 1972, of a kind on the delivery of which, if paragraph (xxviii) of Part I of this Schedule were disregarded, tax would be chargeable at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (e).”.

90. —The Principal Act is hereby amended as specified in column (3) of the Tenth Schedule to this Act.