Finance Act 2000

PART 1 Income Tax, Corporation Tax and Capital Gains Tax

Chapter 1 Interpretation

1 Interpretation (Part1).

1.—In this Part “Principal Act” means the Taxes Consolidation Act, 1997.

Chapter 2 Income Tax

2 Amendment of section 188 (age exemption and associated marginal relief) of Principal Act.

2.—Section 188 of the Principal Act is amended, as respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, by the substitution of the following for subsection (2):

“(2) In this section, ‘the specified amount’ means, subject to section 187(2)—

(a) in the case of an individual referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of ‘specified amount’ in section 461(1) (inserted by the Finance Act, 1999), £15,000, and

(b) in any other case, £7,500.”.

3 Alteration of rates of income tax.

3.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended as follows—

(a) in section 15, by the substitution of the following for subsection (2) and the Table to the section:

“(2) Where a person who is charged to income tax for any year of assessment is an individual (other than an individual acting in a fiduciary or representative capacity), such individual shall, notwithstanding anything in the Income Tax Acts but subject to section 16(2), be charged to tax on such individual's taxable income—

(a) in a case in which such individual is assessed to tax otherwise than in accordance with section 1017 and is not an individual referred to in paragraph (b), at the rates specified in Part 1 of the Table to this section, or

(b) in a case in which the individual is assessed to tax otherwise than in accordance with section 1017 and is entitled to a reduction of tax provided for in section 462, at the rates specified in Part 2 of the Table to this section, or

(c) subject to subsections (3) and (5), in a case in which such individual is assessed to tax in accordance with section 1017, at the rates specified in Part 3 of the Table to this section,

and the rates in each Part of that Table shall be known respectively by the description specified in column (3) in each such Part opposite the mention of the rate or rates, as the case may be, in column (2) of that Part.

(3) Subject to subsections (4) and (5)—

(a) where an individual is charged to tax for a year of assessment in accordance with section 1017, and

(b) both the individual and his or her spouse are each in receipt of income in respect of which the individual is chargeable to tax in accordance with that section,

the part of his or her taxable income chargeable to tax at the standard rate specified in column (1) of Part 3 of the Table to this section shall be increased by an amount which is the lesser of—

(i) £6,000, and

(ii) the specified income of the individual or the specified income of the individual's spouse, whichever is the lesser.

(4) For the purpose of subsection (3), ‘specified income’ means total income after deducting from such income any deduction attributable to a particular source of income.

(5) Where all or any part of an increase under subsection (3) in the amount of an individual's taxable income chargeable to income tax at the standard rate is attributable to emoluments from which tax is deductible in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 4 of Part 42 and any regulations made thereunder, then, the full amount of the increase, or that part of the increase, as may be appropriate in the circumstances, shall only be used in accordance with the provisions of that Chapter and those regulations in calculating the amount of tax to be deducted from those emoluments.

TABLE

PART 1

Part of taxable income	Rate of tax	Description of rate
(1)	(2)	(3)
The first £17,000	22 per cent	the standard rate
The remainder	44 per cent	the higher rate

PART 2

Part of taxable income	Rate of tax	Description of rate
(1)	(2)	(3)
The first £20,150	22 per cent	the standard rate
The remainder	44 per cent	the higher rate

PART 3

Part of taxable income	Rate of tax	Description of rate
(1)	(2)	(3)
The first £28,000	22 per cent	the standard rate
The remainder	44 per cent	the higher rate

and

(b) in section 1024—

(i) by the substitution of the following for paragraph (c) of subsection (2):

“(c) Subject to subsection (4), Part 1 of the Table to section 15 shall apply to each of the spouse concerned.”,

and

(ii) by the substitution of the following for subsection (4):

“(4) Where the part of the taxable income of a spouse chargeable to tax in accordance with subsection (2)(c) at the standard rate is less than that of the other spouse and is less than the part of taxable income specified in column (1) of Part 1 of the Table to section 15 (in this subsection referred to as the ‘appropriate part’) in respect of which the first-mentioned spouse is so chargeable to tax at that rate, the part of taxable income of the other spouse which by virtue of subsection (2)(c) is to be charged to tax at the standard rate shall be increased, to an amount not exceeding the part of taxable income specified in column (1) of Part 3 of the Table to section 15 in respect of which an individual to whom that Part applies is so chargeable at that rate, by the amount by which the taxable income of the first-mentioned spouse chargeable to tax at the standard rate is less than the appropriate part.”.

4 Amendment of section 461 (standard rated personal allowances) of Principal Act.

4.—Section 461 (inserted by the Finance Act, 1999) of the Principal Act is amended, as respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, by the substitution in the definition of “the specified amount” in subsection (1) of “£9,400” for “£8,400” and “£4,700” for “£4,200”, and the said definition, as so amended, is set out in the Table to this section.

TABLE

“the specified amount”, in relation to an individual for a year of assessment, means—

(a) £9,400, in a case in which the claimant is—

(i) a married person who—

(I) is assessed to tax for the year of assessment in accordance with the provisions of section 1017, or

(II) proves that his or her spouse is not living with him or her but is wholly or mainly maintained by him or her for the year of assessment and that the claimant is not entitled, in computing his or her income for tax purposes for that year, to make any deduction in respect of the sums paid by him or her for the maintenance of his or her spouse,

or

(ii) a widowed person, other than a person to whom subparagraph (i) applies, whose spouse has died in the year of assessment,

and

(b) £4,700 in the case of any other claimant.

5 Additional standard rated allowance for certain widowed persons.

5.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following for section 461A:

“Additional standard rated allowance for certain widowed persons.	461A.—(1) In this section— ‘appropriate percentage’, in relation to a year of assessment, means a percentage equal to the standard rate of tax for that year;
	‘specified amount’, means £1,000.
	(2) This section applies to an individual being a widowed person, other than—
	(a) a person referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of ‘the specified amount’ in section 461(1) (as amended by the Finance Act, 2000), or
	(b) a person entitled to a reduction of tax under section 462.
	(3) Where for any year of assessment an individual to whom this section applies is entitled to a reduction of tax under section 461, the income tax to be charged on the individual, other than in accordance with section 16(2), for a year of assessment shall be further reduced by an amount which is the lesser of—
	(a) an amount equal to the appropriate percentage of the specified amount, or
	(b) the amount which reduces that income tax to nil.”,

and

(b) in the Table to section 458—

(i) by the deletion of “Section 461A” from Part 1, and

(ii) by the insertion, in Part 2, after “Section 461(2)” of “Section 461A”.

6 Widowed parents and other single parents: standard rated allowance.

6.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended—

(a) in section 462, by the substitution in subsection (1) of “£4,700” for “£1,050” in the definition of “the specified amount”,

(b) by the deletion of section 462A (inserted by the Finance Act, 1999), and

(c) in the Table to section 458, by the deletion of “Section 462A” from Part 1.

7 Special relief for widowed parent following death of spouse.

7.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following for section 463:

“Special relief for widowed parent following death of spouse.	463.—(1) In this section— ‘appropriate percentage’, in relation to a year of assessment, means a percentage equal to the standard rate of tax for that year;
	‘claimant’ means an individual whose spouse dies in a year of assessment;
	‘qualifying child’, in relation to a claimant and a year of assessment, has the same meaning as in section 462, and the question of whether a child is a qualifying child shall be determined on the same basis as it would be for the purposes of section 462,
	and subsections (3), (4) and (6) of that section shall apply accordingly;
	‘specified amount’, in relation to a claimant for each of the 5 years of assessment immediately following the year of assessment in which the claimant's spouse dies, means—
	(a) for the first of those 5 years, £10,000,
	(b) for the second of those 5 years, £8,000,
	(c) for the third of those 5 years, £6,000,
	(d) for the fourth of those 5 years, £4,000, and
	(e) for the fifth of those 5 years, £2,000.
	(2) Where a claimant proves, in relation to any of the 5 years of assessment immediately following the year of assessment in which the claimant's spouse dies that—
	(a) he or she has not remarried before the commencement of the year, and
	(b) a qualifying child is resident with him or her for the whole or part of the year,
	the income tax to be charged on the claimant, other than in accordance with section 16(2), for that year of assessment shall be reduced by an amount which is the lesser of—
	(i) an amount equal to the appropriate percentage of the specified amount in relation to the claimant for that year, or
	(ii) the amount which reduces that income tax to nil,
	but this section shall not apply for any year of assessment in the case of a man and woman living together as man and wife.”

and

(b) in the Table to section 458—

(i) by the deletion of “Section 463” from Part 1, and

(ii) by the insertion, in Part 2, after “Section 462” of “Section 463”.

8 Age allowance.

8.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent Age allowance. years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following for section 464:

“Age allowance.	464.—(1) In this section—
	‘appropriate percentage’, in relation to a year of assessment, means a percentage equal to the standard rate of tax for that year;
	‘specified amount’, in relation to an individual for a year of assessment, means—
	(a) £1,600, in a case where the individual is a married person whose spouse is living with him or her and who is assessed to tax in accordance with section 1017 and
	(b) £800, in any other case.
	(2) Where for any year of assessment an individual is entitled to a reduction of income tax under section 461 and proves that at any time during that year of assessment—
	(a) the individual, or
	(b) in the case of a married person whose spouse is living with him or her and who is assessed to tax in accordance with section 1017, either the individual or the individual's spouse,
	was of the age of 65 years or over, the income tax to be charged on the individual, other than in accordance with section 16(2), for that year of assessment shall be reduced by a further amount which is the lesser of—
	(i) an amount equal to the appropriate percentage of the specified amount in relation to the individual for that year, or
	(ii) the amount which reduces that income tax to nil.”,

and

(b) in the Table to section 458—

(i) by the deletion of “Section 464” from Part 1, and

(ii) by the insertion, in Part 2, after “Section 463” (inserted by this Act) of “Section 464”.

9 Incapacitated children.

9.—As respects the year of assessment 2000-2001 and subsequent years of assessment, the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following for section 465: