S.I. No. 134/1993:

VALUE-ADDED TAX (REFUND OF TAX) (NO. 24) ORDER, 1993.

VALUE-ADDED TAX (REFUND OF TAX) (NO. 24) ORDER, 1993.

I, BERTIE AHERN, Minister for Finance, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 20 (3) of the Value-Added Tax Act, 1972 (No. 22 of 1972), hereby order as follows:

1. This Order may be cited as the Value-Added Tax (Refund of Tax) (No. 24) Order, 1993.

2. (1) In this Order--

"the Act" means the Value-Added Tax Act, 1972 ;

"qualifying vehicle" means--

( a ) a single-deck touring coach having dimensions as designated by the manufacturer of not less than 3,350 millimetres in height, not less than 10,000 millimetres in length and not less than 1,400 millimetres in floor height, and which is not more than two years old, or

( b ) a double-deck touring coach having dimensions as designated by the manufacturer of not more than 4,300 millimetres in height and not less than 10,000 millimetres in length, and which is not more than two years old;

"qualifying person" means a person who is engaged in the business of carriage for reward of persons, including tourists, by road under contracts for group transport.

(2) In this Order a reference to a paragraph or subparagraph is to a paragraph or subparagraph of this Order, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended.

3. (1) Unless the option in subparagraph (2) is availed of, a qualifying person who has borne or paid tax on--

( a ) the purchase, or hiring to him (other than hiring for a period of less than six consecutive months), within the State,

( b ) the intra-Community acquisition in the State, or

( c ) the importation into the State,

of a qualifying vehicle shall, subject to the conditions specified in paragraph 4, be repaid so much of such tax as is specified in paragraph 5.

(2) Where a qualifying person is a taxable person and makes an intra-Community acquisition of a qualifying vehicle in the State he may, at the time the tax becomes payable in accordance with section 19 (3) of the Act, reduce the amount payable on the acquisition by the amount specified in paragraph 5 (2).

(3) The provisions of subparagraph (1) or (2) shall apply only where a qualifying person is not entitled to a deduction or repayment, under any other provision of the Act or regulations made thereunder or of any other Act or Instrument made under statute administered by the Revenue Commissioners, of any portion of the tax paid or payable in respect of the qualifying vehicle.

4. The conditions to be fulfilled by a person in order to obtain a repayment of tax under this Order by virtue of being a qualifying person are as follows:

( a ) the person shall claim a repayment of the tax, by completing such form as is provided for that purpose by the Revenue Commissioners, and shall certify the particulars shown on such form to be correct;

( b ) the person shall establish to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners that he is a qualifying person;

( c ) the person shall produce--

(i) in the case of a purchase or hire within the State of a qualifying vehicle, an invoice, issued to that person in accordance with section 17 (12) (a) (i) of the Act, establishing the amount of tax paid on the purchase or hire, or

(ii) in the case of an intra-Community acquisition in the State of a qualifying vehicle, an official receipt or other document establishing the amount of tax paid on the intra-Community acquisition together with the invoice issued to that person by the supplier in the Member State of supply, or

(iii) in the case of an importation into the State of a qualifying vehicle, an official receipt or other document establishing the amount of tax paid on the importation and indicating the number of the relevant customs entry;

( d ) the person is not a person to whom a notice has been issued under paragraph 6 and which has not been revoked.

5. (1) The amount of tax to be repaid in accordance with paragraph 3 (1) shall be so much of the amount of tax borne or paid at the rate specified in section 11 (1) (a) of the Act which is shown to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners to be in excess of the amount which would have been borne or paid if the rate for the time being specified in section 11 (1) (d) of the Act had applied to the purchase, hiring, intra-Community acquisition or importation in question.

(2) The reduction referred to in paragraph 3 (2) shall be equal to the amount of the tax that would fall to be repaid under subparagraph (1) if paragraph 3(1) had applied.

6. (1) The Revenue Commissioners may, where it appears requisite to them to do so for the protection of the revenue, by notice in writing exclude a taxable person from the provisions of paragraph 3 (2).

(2) A notice under this paragraph shall be revoked where it appears to the Revenue Commissioners that it is no longer requisite for the protection of the revenue to exclude the taxable person concerned from the provisions of paragraph 3 (2).

7. The Value-Added Tax (Refund of Tax) (No. 19) Order, 1986 ( S.I. No. 68 of 1986 ), and the Value-Added Tax (Refund of Tax) (No. 22) Order, 1988 ( S.I. No. 262 of 1988 ), are hereby revoked.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 21st day of May, 1993.

BERTIE AHERN,

Minister for Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This Order replaces S.I. Nos. 68 of 1986 and 262 of 1988. It retains the schemes set out in those Orders whereby VAT in excess of the reduced rate (12.5 per cent as at the date of the Order) can be repaid, subject to certain conditions, to unregistered coach operators in respect of the tax paid on touring coaches of certain dimensions.

The Order also introduces a mechanism whereby a coach operator who is a taxable person (but without deductability in respect of his coach tour activities) may reduce the amount of tax payable on his intra-Community acquisition of a touring coach by an amount equal to the amount which would have been repaid had he not been a taxable person.