Finance Act, 1995

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Amendment of provisions relating to appeals.

173.—(1) Part XXVI of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , is hereby amended—

(a) in section 416—

(i) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) (a) A person aggrieved by any assessment to income tax made upon him by the inspector or such other officer as the Revenue Commissioners shall appoint in that behalf (hereafter in this section referred to as ‘other officer’) shall be entitled to appeal to the Appeal Commissioners on giving, within thirty days after the date of the notice of assessment, notice in writing to the inspector or other officer.

(b) If on an application under paragraph (a) the inspector or other officer is of opinion that the person who has given the notice of appeal is not entitled to make such an appeal, the inspector or other officer shall refuse the application and notify the person in writing accordingly specifying the grounds for such refusal.

(c) A person who has had an application under paragraph (a) refused by the inspector or other officer shall be entitled to appeal against such refusal by notice in writing to the Appeal Commissioners within 15 days of the date of issue, by the inspector or other officer, of the notice of refusal.

(d) On receipt of an application under paragraph (c) the Appeal Commissioners shall request the inspector or other officer to furnish them with a copy of the notice issued to the person under paragraph (b) and, on receipt thereof, they shall as soon as possible—

(I) refuse the application for an appeal by giving notice in writing to the applicant specifying the grounds for their refusal, or

(II) allow the application for an appeal and give notice in writing accordingly to both the applicant and the inspector or other officer, or

(III) notify in writing both the applicant and the inspector or other officer that they have decided to arrange a hearing, at such time and place specified in the notice, to enable them determine whether or not to allow the application for an appeal.”,

(ii) in subsection (2)—

(I) by the substitution of the following subparagraph for subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (b):

“(ii) in a case where it appears to the inspector or other officer that an appeal may be settled by agreement under subsection (3), he may refrain from giving notice under this paragraph or may, by notice in writing, and with the agreement of the appellant, withdraw a notice already given.”,

and

(II) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (b):

“(c) Where, on application in writing in that behalf to the Appeal Commissioners, a person, who has given notice of appeal to the inspector or other officer in accordance with the provisions of subsection (1) (a), satisfies the Appeal Commissioners that the information submitted to the inspector or other officer is such that the appeal is likely to be determined on the first occasion on which it comes before them for hearing, the Appeal Commissioners may direct the inspector or other officer to give the notice in writing first mentioned in paragraph (b) and the inspector or other officer shall comply forthwith with such direction and, accordingly, subparagraph (ii) of the said paragraph shall not apply to that notice of appeal.”,

and

(iii) in subsection (6), by the substitution of the following clause for clause (B) of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (c):

“(B) such a return has been made but—

(I) all the statements of profits and gains, schedules and other evidence relating to such return have not been furnished by or on behalf of the appellant,

(II) information requested from the appellant by the Appeal Commissioners in the hearing of the appeal has not been supplied by the appellant,

(III) the terms of a precept issued by the Appeal Commissioners under section 422 have not been complied with by the appellant, or

(IV) any questions as to an assessment or assessments put by the Appeal Commissioners under section 425 have not been answered to their satisfaction,”,

(b) in sections 421 (1), 422 (5), 423 (1), 424 (a) and 427 (e), by the substitution of “inspector or such other officer as the Revenue Commissioners shall authorise in that behalf for” “inspector” in each place where it occurs,

(c) in section 428—

(i) by the substitution in subsection (1) of “inspector or such other officer as the Revenue Commissioners shall authorise in that behalf (hereafter in this section referred to as Other officer')” for “inspector”, and

(ii) by the insertion in subsection (2) of “or other officer” after “inspector”,

(d) in section 429—

(i) by the substitution in subsection (1) of “inspector or such other officer as the Revenue Commissioners shall authorise in that behalf (hereafter in this section referred to as ‘other officer’)” for “inspector”,

(ii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2):

“(2A) The provisions of section 421 (2) shall, with any necessary modifications, apply in relation to a rehearing of an appeal by a judge of the Circuit Court as they do in relation to the hearing of an appeal by the Appeal Commissioners.”,

and

(iii) by the insertion in subsection (6) of “or other officer” after “inspector”,

and

(e) in section 432, by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2):

“(2) The Appeal Commissioners shall hear and determine an appeal to them under subsection (1) as if it were an appeal against an assessment to income tax and all of the provisions of section 416, with respect to such appeals, together with the provisions of this Act relating to the rehearing of an appeal and the statement of a case for the opinion of the High Court on a point of law, shall apply accordingly with any necessary modifications.”.

(2) Section 2 of the Finance Act, 1969 , is hereby amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (5B) (inserted by the Finance Act, 1989 ):

“(5B) The Appeal Commissioners shall hear and determine an appeal made to them under subsection (5A) as if it were an appeal against an assessment to income tax and, subject to subsection (5C), all of the provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , relating to such appeals and to the rehearing of an appeal and the statement of a case for the opinion of the High Court on a point of law shall apply accordingly with any necessary modifications.”.

(3) The provisions of subsection (1) shall, with any necessary modifications, apply to an appeal in relation to capital gains tax as if the appeal were against an assessment to income tax.

(4) (a) Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall apply and have effect as respects appeals against assessments made after the passing of this Act.

(b) Paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) of subsection (1) and subsection (2) shall apply and have effect as respects every hearing of an appeal by the Appeal Commissioners or the rehearing of an appeal by a judge of the Circuit Court, as the case may be, after the passing of this Act.