Finance Act, 1985

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Amendment of section 138A (additional allowance for widows and others in respect of children) of Income Tax Act, 1967.

4.—The Income Tax Act, 1967 , is hereby amended, as respects the year 1985-86 and subsequent years of assessment, by the substitution of the following section for section 138A (inserted by the Finance Act, 1980 )—

“138A.—(1) (a) This section applies to an individual who is not entitled to a deduction mentioned in paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) (ii) of section 138.

(b) In this section ‘a qualifying child’ means, in relation to any claimant and year of assessment—

(i) a child—

(I) who is born in the year of assessment, or

(II) who, at the commencement of the year of assessment, is under the age of 16 years, or

(III) who, if over the age of 16 years at the commencement of the year of assessment—

(A) is receiving full-time instruction at any university, college, school or other educational establishment, or

(B) is permanently incapacitated by reason of mental or physical infirmity from maintaining himself and had become so permanently incapacitated before he had attained the age of 21 years or had become so permanently incapacitated after attaining the age of 21 years but while he had been in receipt of full-time instruction as aforesaid,

and

(ii) a child who is a child of the claimant or, not being such a child, is in the custody of the claimant and is maintained by the claimant at his own expense for the whole or part of the year of assessment.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), if the claimant, being an individual to whom this section applies, proves in the case of a year of assessment that a qualifying child is resident with him for the whole or part of the year he shall be entitled, if he is an individual to whom paragraph (b) (i) of section 138 applies, to a deduction of £1,400 or, if he is an individual to whom paragraph (c) of section 138 applies, to a deduction of £1,900:

Provided that this section shall not apply for any year of assessment in the case of a husband or a wife where the wife is living with her husband, or in the case of a man and woman who are living together as man and wife.

(3) A claimant shall be entitled to only one deduction under subsection (2) for any year of assessment irrespective of the number of qualifying children resident with him in that year.

(4) (a) The references in subsection (1) (b) to a child receiving full-time instruction at an educational establishment shall include references to a child undergoing training by any person (hereafter in this subsection referred to as ‘the employer’) for any trade or profession in such circumstances that the child is required to devote the whole of his time to the training for a period of not less than two years.

(b) For the purpose of a claim in respect of a child undergoing training the inspector may require the employer to furnish particulars with respect to the training of the child in such form as may be prescribed by the Revenue Commissioners.

(5) No deduction shall be allowed under this section for any year of assessment in respect of any child who is entitled in his own right to an income exceeding £720 in that year, except that if the amount of the excess is less than the deduction which apart from this subsection would be allowable, a deduction reduced by that amount shall be allowed:

Provided that in calculating the income of the child for the purposes of the foregoing provision no account shall be taken of any income to which the child is entitled as the holder of a scholarship, bursary or other similar educational endowment.

(6) If any question arises as to whether any person is entitled to an allowance under this section in respect of a child who is over the age of 16 years, as being a child who is receiving such full-time instruction as aforesaid, the Revenue Commissioners may consult the Minister for Education.

(7) In subsection (1) (b) (ii) the reference to a child of the claimant includes a reference to a stepchild of his, an illegitimate child of his if he has married the other parent after the child's birth and an adopted child of his in respect of whom an adoption order under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1976, is in force.”.