Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs IT15. Revised March 2015 RPC005957_EN_WB_L_2

Transcription

1 IT15 Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs Revised March 2015 RPC005957_EN_WB_L_2

2 Contents Introduction and Summary of Scheme 3 General Conditions 3 The Investor (you) 4 The Company 5 Qualifying Trading Activity 6 Extra requirements for certain types of trades 6 The Investment 7 Limits on Investment Amounts 7 New Eligible Shares 7 The Refund 8 Further Investments 8 How to make a Claim? 9 Contact Details 9 Appendix I Cumulation of State Aid 10 Appendix II How are SURE refunds calculated? 11 Calculation Template 18 Status of this Document This document is not a legal interpretation of any of the legislation on which this scheme is based. Nor is it intended as a comprehensive guide to the scheme. It is a general information guide to the Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs (SURE). This leaflet is intended to be in plain language. However, throughout this leaflet several terms are used which are defined in legislation. Revenue has produced a separate leaflet (IT15A) containing the statutory definition of many of these terms or phrases. You are advised to read this leaflet in conjunction with the definitions provided and where necessary consult Part 16 of Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (as amended) for further definitions. 2

3 Introduction and Summary of Scheme Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs (SURE) is a tax relief incentive scheme. If you are interested in starting your own company, you may be entitled to an income tax refund 1 of up to 41% of the capital that you invest under SURE. Depending on the size of your investment you may be entitled to a refund of income tax paid over the 6 years prior to year in which you invest. The following is a basic example of how refunds under SURE are calculated. John makes a SURE investment of 100,000 in The 100,000 investment made by John can be used to reduce his taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years. John s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014], per his Forms P60, and current year, per his Form P45, are as follows: Year Earnings 80,000 80, ,000 75,000 60,000 30,000 30,000 Tax Paid 21,496 21,496 29,532 20,562 14,412 2,700 2,700 John opts to utilise his SURE investment of 100,000 in This reduces John s taxable income and tax payable for 2011 to Nil and results in a SURE refund of 29,532 calculated as follows: 2011 Earnings: 100,000 SURE Investment: 100,000 Taxable Income: Nil As John paid tax of 29,532 in the 2011 tax year, and has previously not received a full or partial refund of tax paid in the 2011 tax year, he will receive a SURE refund of the full amount of the tax he paid in the 2011 tax year of 29,532. Further examples are available in Appendix II. General Conditions The general conditions for SURE are that you must: Establish a new company carrying on a qualifying trading activity (see below); Have mainly PAYE income in the previous 4 years. This would include a person currently in PAYE type employment, an unemployed person, a person recently made redundant or a retired person; Take up full-time employment in the new company either as a Director or an Employee; Invest cash into the new company by way of purchase of new shares. The following sections of the leaflet will explain the requirements of the scheme and the refund available. What Conditions Apply? Conditions apply to the Investor (you), the newly created company and its business activities and the timing and nature of your investment. These are set out below. 1 Your SURE Investment does not entitle you to a refund of PRSI and / or USC deducted 3

4 The Investor (you) You must make an investment by purchasing new eligible shares (please refer to the definition of new eligible shares on page 7) You must hold the shares for a period of 3 years from the date of issue. You must hold at least 15% of the issued share capital of the company for 12 months after the issue of shares, or if the company is not trading at that time, from the date it begins to trade. Your income from previous years must have been mainly liable to PAYE. However income in the year immediately before the investment can be from any source. For example if your SURE investment is made in 2015, your income for the 2011 to 2014 tax years are examined and the following applies: 2014: Your income can be from any source 2013, 2012, 2011: Your non-paye income should not exceed the lower of your PAYE income or 50,000. Please refer to worked examples in Appendix II. You must enter a full-time employment for a 12 month period with the company as an employee or a director starting either within the year in which the investment is made or if later, within 6 months of the date on which the share issue is made. It should be noted that you cannot be employed elsewhere during this 12 month period (except where the aggregate amount of such other employment(s) is no more than 10 hours per week). You must not receive any payments from the company other than reasonable remuneration and expenses in the 3 year period after the share issue. During the 12 months before your first investment in the company you must not have held (or have been entitled to acquire either directly or indirectly) more than 15% of the share capital, loan capital or voting rights of any other company. This condition may be set aside where you only held an interest in only one other company and either: The company is dormant i.e. no turnover in any of the previous 3 years; or (a) The company had an annual turnover not exceeding 127,000 in each of the three accounting periods prior to the SURE investment; and (b) The other company mainly carried on a qualifying trading activity (see below) The subscription for the shares must be for bona fide commercial purposes. You must not avail of SURE for the purposes of avoiding tax only. Neither you nor the company may enter into any agreement, arrangement or understanding which could reasonably be considered to eliminate the risk from your investment. 4

5 The Company The company must: Be a Qualifying New Venture. This means that as well as carrying on a qualifying trade (see below) it must be a new company i.e. less than two years old (from incorporation), and it must not have taken over an existing trade. The following are examples of companies that would NOT qualify as new ventures: 1. A business closed down (e.g. a pub) and the SURE company re-opens the pub (possibly with a different name and layout) in the same location. 2. A person who has traded as a Sole Trader and then decides to incorporate and carry on the same business as a company. Be incorporated in the State or in another EEA 2 State. Be an unquoted company. Be tax resident in the State or in another EEA State and carry on business in the State through a branch or agency. Carry on relevant trading activities from a fixed place of business in the State. Be a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise. Have its issued share capital fully paid up. (This must remain fully paid up throughout the three years following investment) i.e. all issued shares must be paid for in full. Use the amounts invested: for the creation and maintenance of employment and for the benefit of a qualifying new venture in the carrying out of relevant trading activities, and the creation and maintenance of employment. or in the case of a company that has not commenced to carry on relevant trading activities, on research and development activities. The company must not: Have any special trading arrangements with your former employer company, or a company related to that former employer company. Normal business transactions are, however, acceptable, provided these are conducted on an arms length basis. Carry on a trade which is similar to any other trade in respect of which you have or have had a controlling interest. Be considered as a firm in difficulty for the purposes of the Community Guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty. Control or be controlled by any other company, with the exception of controlling a qualifying subsidiary. 2 The European Economic Area (EEA) includes the 28 EU Member States and Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. 5

6 Qualifying Trading Activity Most trading 3 activities are allowed subject to the exceptions below. Exceptions: Once-off or speculative transactions (referred to in the legislation as Adventures or concerns in the nature of trade ) Dealing in commodities or futures in shares, securities or other financial assets Financing activities e.g. making loans Professional service companies e.g. accountants, solicitors, business advisors, doctors and architects, however Internationally Traded Financial Services 4 may qualify subject to the exclusions above Dealing in or developing land (including building development) Forestry Operations carried on in the coal industry or in the steel and shipbuilding sectors The production of a film Extra requirements for certain types of trades Green Energy Activities Where the trading activities of a company includes green energy activities it must spend all the money subscribed on such activities prior to the final month of the 4 year holding period for the shares. Internationally Traded Financial Services A company carrying on Internationally Traded Financial Services 4 will require a certificate from Enterprise Ireland. Please contact Enterprise Ireland at +353 (1) or via at Eoghan.Hanrahan@enterprise-Ireland.com Tourist Traffic Undertakings A company carrying on Tourist Traffic Undertakings must have prior approval from Failte Ireland, BEFORE making any application to the Revenue Commissioners. Please contact the Investment and Product Development Division of Failte Ireland at or , or via at taxschemes@failteireland.ie with any queries. Research and Development Activities Companies that have not commenced to trade may still qualify for SURE relief if they carry out relevant R&D activity. Certain additional conditions arise: They must commence to trade within 2 years of the investment and expend all of the money subscribed from shares before the end of the 3 year holding period, or The company must spend all the money subscribed on research and development activities and must dispose of a specified intangible asset within the meaning of Section 291A TCA 1997 (i.e. intellectual property or know-how) prior to a date which is one month before the end of the 4 year holding period for the shares. 3 The term trading is not defined in legislation as it is a concept that has been interpreted by the Courts over many years However, for practical purposes most regular recurring business activity that has a turnover is likely to qualify as trading. 4 The inclusion of Internationally Traded Financial Services is subject to a commencement order by the Minister for Finance. 6

7 The Investment The investment must be for new eligible shares (shares with no preferential rights). The investment is normally a direct cash investment for shares. However, if the investor has paid company expenses from his own resources this may also qualify. If the investor has met company expenses from his/her own resources and this is considered a directors loan, the investor may, within 12 months, convert this loan to share capital. In order to obtain SURE on the converted loan, they must supply a registered auditor s statement containing the following: The dates the loan(s) was made. The date the loan(s) was converted. Confirmation the funds were used for the benefit of a qualifying new venture in the carrying out of relevant trading activities, or in the case of a company that has not commenced to carry on relevant trading activities, on research and development activities and the creation and maintenance of employment. Please note, salary forgone is not considered to be the making of a loan under SURE. There can be two relevant investments under the scheme, the second of which must take place within two years of the end of the first year i.e. first relevant investment in 2015, then the second investment must take place in either 2016 or A relevant investment is the total amount subscribed for shares in a calendar year e.g. a person can make investments in March, April and May, and this would be a single relevant investment. Limits on Investment Amounts The minimum investment under the scheme is 250 and the maximum investment is 100,000 per year. Therefore the limit on the SURE investment is effectively 700,000, as 100,000 may be relieved in each of the previous 6 tax years and the current year e.g. you can invest 700,000 in 2015 and claim SURE of 100,000 in the years 2009 to 2015 inclusive. A company that raises both SURE and EII 5 may raise a maximum of 2,500,000 in any one twelve-month period, up to a lifetime maximum of 10,000,000. New Eligible Shares The shares issued in respect of your investment must be eligible shares. This means that throughout the holding period of 3 years they cannot carry any present or future preferential rights to dividends or to a company s assets on it s winding up. In addition they must not carry any present or future preferential right to be redeemed. 5 The Employment Incentive Investment Scheme (see leaflet IT55) 7

8 The Refund If all of the conditions are met you may be entitled to a SURE refund on the investment. SURE is granted as follows: You select, from the previous 6 tax years, which year you want the SURE investment to be utilised. Your SURE investment is used to either: to fully utilise your SURE investment, up to a maximum of 100,000, or reduce your taxable income in the year selected to Nil. If your SURE Investment has not been fully utilised in the year selected you can pick other years(s) in order to fully utilise your SURE investment. It should be noted that your: SURE investment, up to a maximum of 100,000, must be fully utilised in the 1st year selected by you before you pick another year and so on until your SURE investment has been fully utilised. SURE investment cannot be split between years in order to reduce your income in a certain year to the standard rate cut off point and move to another year in order to maximise the refund at the top rate of tax. SURE investment cannot be transferred to or split with your spouse / civil partner. Only the person making the SURE investment is entitled to tax relief on the SURE investment made. If you have already received EII (or its predecessor BES) relief for any of the six years selected, the amount of income on which SURE is available to you in that year is the difference between the amount of the original EII/BES investment and the maximum annual amount of 100,000. Please refer to Appendix II for worked examples and a template to work out an estimate of the SURE refund you may be entitled to. Further Investments If you wish to expand the company in the future the company may qualify for the Employment and Investment Incentive (EII) relief in respect of any further investment made by third party investors in the company. You must however, notwithstanding any outside investment, ensure that the continuing conditions of SURE are not contravened. Please see separate information leaflet on EII, IT55. 8

9 How to make a Claim? Before the claim is made the investor must have made his/her investment and received his/her shares in the company. Claims can be made once the company commences to trade i.e. they must make their first sale. Where the claim relates to a company which has not commenced to trade, but has carried out research and development activities, a claim can be made once the company has expended 30% of the funds raised on the research and development activities, only where those activities are undertaken with a view to carrying on relevant trading activities. Claims should be sent to: Office of Revenue Commissioners, Incentives and Financial Services Branch, New Stamping Building, Dublin Castle, Dublin 2. Or by to SUREadmin@revenue.ie And must include: A Form RINE-C completed by the company Secretary. A separate Form RINE-I completed by each individual investor. Copy of company bank statement showing when the investment was lodged. Form B5 showing allotment of shares. Once Incentives and Financial Services Branch (IFSB) is satisfied that the investment qualifies for the relief the individual investor s application will be forwarded to the applicant s tax office. IFSB does not calculate or process any refund due. Refunds are dealt with by the applicant s tax office, who will notify the individual applicants directly of refunds due. Note that if you have any outstanding tax liabilities, these will have to be addressed prior to the issue of a SURE refund. Contact Details Queries in relation to the operation of this scheme should be ed to SUREadmin@revenue.ie or by telephone (01) or call in to your Local Enterprise Office. 9

10 Appendix I Cumulation of State Aid With effect from 1st January 2007, a company that raises capital under the SURE scheme (and/ or under the EII) will be subject to a reduction in other State aids, which they apply for subsequent to raising funds under the SURE/EII (with the exception of schemes approved under the R&D and Innovation State-aid framework). The attention of owners of small businesses, or of people intending to start or expand a business by raising SURE/EII investments, is drawn in particular to the fact that under EU Cumulation of State-aid rules, full details of a company that has been the beneficiary of a State aid in the form of EII/SCS: Must be notified to the European Commission; Will be published on the Revenue website and on the European Commission s website; and may be made available to other State agencies with responsibility for the administration of other State-aided schemes. N.B. Any queries regarding EU cumulation of State aid rules should be addressed to the State agency responsible for administration of the State aid in question. Useful Contacts in relevant State agencies State Body Contact name Contact address Telephone Enterprise Ireland IDA Udaras na Gaeltachta Failte Ireland Eoghan Hanrahan Clem McLoughlin Miriam Ní Néill Senior Investment Advisor, Investment Services Division, Enterprise Ireland, The Plaza, Eastpoint Business Park, Dublin 3. Athlone Business & Technology Park, Garrycastle, Dublin Road, Athlone, Co. Westmeath. Udaras na Gaeltachta, Na Forbacha, Gaillimh Amiens Street, Dublin (1) Eoghan.Hanrahan@enterprise-Ireland.com +353 (90) Clem.mcloughlin@ida.ie +353 (91) m.nineill@udaras.ie +353 (1) taxschemes@failteireland.ie 10

11 Appendix II How are SURE refunds calculated? Example 1: The following example illustrates how a refund on a SURE investment is calculated where relief on the SURE Investment can be obtained in one income tax year. John, makes a SURE investment of 100,000 in 2015 John s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014], per his Forms P60, and current year, per his Form P45, are as follows: Year Earnings 80,000 80, ,000 75,000 60,000 30,000 30,000 Tax Paid 21,496 21,496 29,532 20,562 14,412 2,700 2,700 His Tax Credits and Rate Band, per his Form P60 for 2011, are as follows: Rate Band: 32,800 Tax Credits: 3,300 John opts to utilise his SURE investment of 100,000 to reduce his 2011 taxable income and tax payable to Nil calculated as follows: 2011 Earnings: 100,000 SURE Investment: 100,000 Taxable Income: Nil As John paid tax of 29,532 in the 2011 tax year he will receive a SURE refund of the full amount of the tax paid in the 2011 tax year of 29,

12 Example 2: The following example illustrates how a refund on a SURE investment is calculated where relief on the SURE Investment is obtained in more than one income tax year. Rose, makes a SURE investment of 55,000 in Rose s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014], per Rose s Forms P60, and current year, per Rose s Form P45, are as follows: Year Earnings 25,000 27,000 18,000 45,000 40,000 35,000 23,000 Tax Paid Nil 8,262 6,622 5,572 4,100 Rose s Tax Credits and Rate Band, per her Forms P60 for the 2011 and 2012 tax years, are as follows: Year Rate Band 32,800 32,800 Tax Credits 3,300 3,300 The 55,000 investment made by Rose is used to reduce her taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years. Rose elects to utilise her SURE investment of 55,000 as follows: Firstly to reduce her 2012 taxable income to Nil calculated as follows: 2012 Earnings: 45,000 SURE Investment 45,000 Taxable Income: Nil As Rose paid tax of 8,262 in the 2012 tax year she will receive a SURE refund of the full amount of the tax paid in the 2012 tax year of 8,262. The balance of Rose s SURE Investment of 10,000 [i.e. 55,000 Investment less 45,000 utilised in 2012] can be used to reduce her taxable income in one of the other years. Rose elects to utilise the balance of her SURE Investment of 10,000 against her 2013 income resulting in a SURE refund of 3,922 calculated as follows: 2013 Earnings 40,000 Sure Investment 10,000 Taxable Income 30,000 Gross Tax Payable: 20% = 6,000 Less Tax Credits: 3,300 Net Tax Payable: 2,700 Credit for Tax Paid: 6,622 Refund due for 2013: 3,922 The total SURE refund made to Rose in respect of her 55,000 Sure Investment is therefore 12,184 [ 8,262 for 2012 and 3,922 for 2013]. 12

13 Example 3: The following example illustrates how a refund on a SURE investment is calculated where the investor has mainly PAYE type income in the 4 years prior to the making of the SURE Investment. Peter, makes a SURE investment of 35,000 in Peter s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014] and current year are as follows. In addition to his PAYE sourced income Peter also had self-employment income in the 2011 and 2012 tax years. Year Earnings 25,000 27,000 18,000 45,000 40,000 35,000 23,000 Self Employed Income Nil Nil 13,000 14,000 Nil Nil Nil Total Income 25,000 27,000 31,000 59,000 40,000 35,000 23,000 Tax Paid ,900 14,002 6,622 5,572 4,100 Peter s Tax Credits and Rate Band, per his Form P60 for 2012, are as follows: Rate Band: 32,800 Tax Credits: 3,300 The 35,000 investment made by Peter is used to reduce his taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years. Peter elects to claim relief on the 35,000 investment in the 2012 tax year. The SURE refund due to Peter is 12,502 calculated as follows: 2012 Earnings 59,000 Sure Investment 35,000 Taxable Income 24,000 Gross Tax Payable: 20% = 4,800 Less Tax Credits: 3,300 Net Tax Payable: 1,500 Credit for Tax Paid: 14,002 Refund due for 2013: 12,502 Note: As Peter s self-employment income did not exceed the lower of 50,000 or his total PAYE sourced income for the 2011 and 2012 tax years his claim for a SURE Refund was not affected. 13

14 Example 4: The following example illustrates how a refund is not due on a SURE investment as, although the investor has mainly PAYE type income in the 4 years prior to the making of the SURE Investment, the investor s non-paye income (Rental Income in this case) in the 2013 tax year exceeds their PAYE sourced income for the 2013 tax year. Gemma makes a SURE investment of 75,000 in Gemma s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014] and current year are as follows. In addition to her PAYE sourced income Gemma is also in receipt of Rental Income for all years. Year Earnings 25,000 27,000 18,000 35,000 20,000 15,000 23,000 Rental Income 15,000 18,000 20,000 19,000 23,000 27,000 27,000 Total Income 40,000 45,000 38,000 54,000 43,000 42,000 50,000 Tax Paid 6,212 7,852 5,392 11,952 7, ,100 Gemma is not entitled to a SURE refund on her investment of 75,000 as her non PAYE income [Rental Income] exceeded her PAYE type Income in the 2013 tax year. Note: Gemma s income in the 2014 tax year can be from any source and it will not affect her SURE Refund. 14

15 Example 5: The following example illustrates how a refund is calculated on a SURE investment in respect of an investor that has mainly PAYE type income and who also has non-paye income (Rental Income in this case) in the 4 years prior to the making of the SURE Investment. Sarah makes a SURE investment of 45,000 in Sarah s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014] and current year are as follows. In addition to her PAYE sourced income Sarah is also in receipt of Rental Income for all years. Year Earnings 25,000 27,000 18,000 35,000 20,000 15,000 23,000 Rental 15,000 18,000 17,000 19,000 17,000 27,000 27,000 Income Total Income 40,000 45,000 35,000 54,000 37,000 42,000 50,000 Tax Paid 6,212 7,852 4,162 11,952 7,442 7,032 14,100 Note: Sarah s income in the 2014 tax year can be from any source and her income for the other 3 years prior to investment cannot exceed either 50,000 or the amount of her PAYE type income in those years. Sarah does not breach this rule and is due a SURE Refund of 11,952 on her investment of 45,000 calculated as follows: The 45,000 investment made by Sarah can be used to reduce her taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years. Sarah elects to claim relief on the 45,000 investment in the 2012 tax year. The SURE refund due to Sarah is 11,952 calculated as follows: 2012 Earnings 54,000 Sure Investment 45,000 Taxable Income 9,000 Gross Tax Payable: 20% = 1,800 Less Tax Credits: 1,800 [to cover] Net Tax Payable: Nil Credit for Tax Paid: 11,952 SURE Refund due to Sarah for 2013: 11,952 15

16 Example 6: The following example illustrates how a refund is not due on a SURE investment as, although the investor has mainly PAYE type income in the 4 years prior to the making of the SURE Investment, the investor s non-paye income (Rental Income in this case) in the 2013 exceeds their PAYE sourced income for Martin makes a SURE investment of 35,000 in Martin s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014] and current year are as follows. In addition to his PAYE sourced income Martin is also in receipt of Rental Income for all years and Job Seekers Benefit in 2013 and Year Earnings 25,000 27,000 23,000 28,000 5,000 Nil Nil Rental 5,000 8,000 4,000 7,500 11,000 13,000 12,000 Income Job Nil Nil Nil Nil 5,250 8,350 Nil Seekers Benefit Total 30,000 35,000 27,000 35,500 21,250 21,350 12,000 Income Tax Paid 6,212 7,852 4,162 11, Nil Martin s income in the 2014 tax year can be from any source. Martin s income for the other 3 years prior to investment cannot exceed either 50,000 or the amount of his PAYE type income in those years. As Martin breaches this rule in the 2013 tax year as his Rental Income of 11,000 exceeds his PAYE Sourced income of 5,250 [Job Seekers Benefit is considered to be PAYE sourced income] Martin is due no SURE refund on his investment of 35,

17 Example 7: The following example illustrates how a refund on a SURE investment is calculated where relief on the SURE Investment can be obtained in one income tax year. Simon, makes a SURE investment of 65,000 in Simon s Earnings & Tax Paid for the last 6 years [2009 to 2014], per his Forms P60, and current year, per his Form P45, are as follows: Year Earnings 45,000 50,000 48,000 75,000 85, ,000 23,000 Tax Paid 3,510 5,476 5,952 17,022 21,122 35,472 4,100 The 65,000 investment made by Simon can be used to reduce his taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years. Simon decides to utilise his SURE investment of 65,000 by claiming relief on his Sure Investment in the 2014 tax year. Simons Tax Credits and Rate Band, per his Form P60 for 2014, are as follows: Rate Band: 41,800 Tax Credits: 4,950 The SURE refund due to Simon is 26,650 calculated as follows: 2014 Earnings 120,000 Sure Investment 65,000 Taxable Income 55,000 Gross Tax Payable: 20% = 8,360 41% = 5,412 55,000 13,772 Less Tax Credits: 4,950 Net Tax Payable: 8,822 Credit for Tax Paid: 35,472 Refund due for 2014: 26,

18 Calculation Template Calculate your expected SURE Refund as follows: You will need your Forms P60, Form P21 - PAYE Balancing Statements or Income Tax Assessments to calculate your expected SURE Refund Step 1: Enter the details of your income from all sources in the table below: Year PAYE Earnings Other Income Other Income Total Income Tax Paid Step 2: Select which year you wish to claim a SURE refund on your SURE Investment. Step 3: If your SURE Investment does not exceed your Total Income for the year got to Step 5. Step 4: If your SURE Investment exceeded your Total Income for the selected year select the other year(s) for which you want to claim your SURE refund. Step 5: Total Income in year selected: Less Sure Investment: Taxable Income Calculate Gross Tax Payable Income up to Rate Band is 20% 20% = Income in excess of Rate Band is taxed at 41% = B) Gross Tax Payable A + B Calculate Net Tax Payable Less Tax Credits Net Tax Payable Calculate SURE Refund Less Credit for Tax Paid in the year Sure Refund [Tax Paid - Net Tax Payable] 18