S.I. No. 322/2006 - Finance Act 2006 (Commencement of Section 26(1)) Order 2006

I, Brian Cowen, Minister for Finance, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 26 (2) of the Finance Act 2006 (No. 6 of 2006), hereby order as follows:

1.     This Order may be cited as the Finance Act 2006 (Commencement of Section 26(1)) Order 2006.

2.     The 26 of June 2006 is appointed as the day on which section 26 of the Finance Act 2006 (No. 6 of 2006) comes into operation.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

This Order appoints the 26 of June 2006 as the date for the coming into operation of Section 26 (1) of the Finance Act 2006 . That section amends Part 9 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 in order to restrict the amount of capital expenditure on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure which can qualify for industrial buildings allowances.

The section is a general provision which applies in relation to the following buildings: hotels holiday camps and registered holiday cottages; sports injuries clinics; multi-storey car parks; industrial buildings and commercial premises located in Urban Renewal, Rural Renewal and Town Renewal areas; commercial premises on qualifying streets under the Living over the Shop scheme; park and ride facilities and commercial premises on the sites of park and ride facilities; third-level college buildings and, finally, qualifying residential units associated with registered nursing homes.

Section 26 provides that only 75 per cent of capital expenditure attributable to the year 2007 and 50 per cent of the capital expenditure attributable to the period 1 January 2008 to 31 July 2008 may qualify for relief. Expenditure which is proper to the year 2006 can qualify without restriction. In the case of qualifying residential units, the 75 per cent restriction generally applicable in 2007 will only apply from 25 March 2007 rather than 1 January 2007.

In the case of the hotel scheme (including holiday camps and holiday cottages) and the industrial and commercial elements of the Urban, Rural and Town Renewal schemes, the section also provides that local authority certification is required in respect of the condition that work to the value of at least 15 per cent of construction or refurbishment costs must be carried out by 31 December 2006. Such certification must include details of actual expenditure incurred to 31 December 2006 and of projected expenditure post 31 December 2006. This latter amount will apply as a cap in relation to the amount of expenditure incurred in the period 1 January 2007 to 31 July 2008 which may be taken into account in calculating capital allowances and that cap will apply prior to the application of the 75 per cent and 50 per cent restrictions.