VALUE-ADDED TAX (AMENDMENT) REGULATIONS 2006

S.I. No. 198 of 2006

The Revenue Commissioners, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 5(3), 13(3) and 32 of the Value-Added Tax Act 1972 (No. 22 of 1972) make the following regulations:

1.           (1)     These Regulations may be cited as the Value-Added Tax (Amendment) Regulations 2006.

(2)     These Regulations come into operation on 1 May 2006.

2.           (The Value-Added Tax Regulations 1979 ( S.I. No. 63 of 1979 ) are amended-

(a)     by substituting the following for Regulation 24:

-�24.   (1)        Subject to paragraph (2) and in accordance with section 5(3)(b) of the Act, the following services are deemed to be a supply of services by a person for consideration in the course or furtherance of his or her business, that is to say, the supply free of charge of catering services for such person's own private use or that of the staff of such person.

(2)    This Regulation does not apply to any such supplies as are referred to in paragraph (1) if the total cost of providing them has not exceeded and is not likely to exceed the amount specified in section 8(3)(e) of the Act in any continuous period of 12 months, unless the person supplying the services referred to in paragraph (1) elects to be a taxable person in respect of those supplies.-�,

and

(b)     by substituting the following for Regulation 30:

-�30     (1)     A person to whom section 13(3) of the Act applies is entitled, under the terms of Council Directive No. 79/1072/EEC of 6 December 1979¹ and Council Directive No. 86/560/EEC of 17 November 1986² , to be repaid tax borne by him or her on the purchase of goods or services supplied to him or her in the State or in respect of goods imported into the State by him or her if he or she fulfils to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners the following conditions:

(a)      in the case of a person having an establishment in another Member State, produces a certificate from the relevant official department of that Member State that he or she is subject, under the laws of that Member State, to value-added tax referred to in Council Directive No. 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977³ ,

(b)      in the case of a person not established in the territory of the Community, provides proof, in the form of a written document from the relevant official department of the country in which he or she has an establishment, that he or she is engaged in carrying on an economic activity,

(c)      claims a refund, within 6 months of the end of the calendar year in which the tax became chargeable, by completing and lodging the appropriate claim form, provided for that purpose by the Revenue Commissioners, together with the appropriate documentation as specified in subparagraph (d),

(d)      establishes the amount of tax borne by the production of the invoice issued by the supplier or the relevant import documents,

(e)      establishes that he or she is not entitled to repayment of the tax under any other provision of the Act or Regulations, or any other instrument made under statute that is administered by the Revenue Commissioners.

(2)      A claim for a refund under this Regulation shall relate to invoiced purchases of goods and services or to imports made during a period, within a calendar year, of not less than 3 months or a period of not more than one calendar year, but where that claim relates to the remainder of a calendar year a claim for a refund may relate to a period of less than 3 months.

(3)      A person may not make a claim under this Regulation for an amount that is less than-

(a)      €200 where the claim is in respect of a period of less than one calendar year but not less than 3 months,

(b)      €25 where the claim is in respect of a period that represents a full calendar year or the final part of the calendar year.

(4)      The certificate and written document mentioned in subparagraphs (a) and (b) of paragraph (1), respectively, shall each be taken as evidence of the matters contained therein for the purposes of this Regulation only for a period of one year from the date such certificate or such document was issued by the official authorities in the State in which that person is established.-�.

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

Explanatory Note

These Regulations substitute two new regulations for Regulations 24 and 30 of the 1979 Regulations. Regulation 24 deals with catering services supplied free of charge for a person's own private use or that of his or her staff, and Regulation 30 deals with the refund of tax to foreign traders as provided for under the Eighth and Thirteenth VAT Directives.

¹ OJ No. L 331 of 27 December 1979, p. 11

² OJ No. L 326 of 21 November 1986, p.40

³ OJ No. L 145 of 13 June 1977, p. 1