IT 56 - Relief for Expenditure on Approved Objects on display in an approved Building or Garden

Introduction

This leaflet sets out the detailed rules in relation to the relief for approved objects in approved buildings and approved gardens (a separate leaflet, IT 30 - Relief for Expenditure on Approved Buildings and Gardens in the State, is available in relation to approved buildings and approved gardens). Tax relief is available to the owner/occupier of an approved building/garden in respect of expenditure incurred on the repair, maintenance and restoration of an approved object on display in the approved building/garden.

Qualifying expenditure is treated for tax purposes as if it were a loss in a separate trade carried on by the owner/ occupier and the normal rules for giving loss relief apply. Unrelieved expenditure may be carried forward for a two-year period.

Relief in respect of qualifying expenditure incurred in a chargeable period will be limited to the amount of the expenditure attributable to actual work carried out during the chargeable period. Tax relief is not available, however, where any such expenditure is otherwise allowable for tax purposes or in respect of sums recoverable by way of a grant or reimbursement from any source.

Structure of Relief

Relief of up to an aggregate total of £6,350 annually is provided for expenditure incurred on the repair, maintenance or restoration of approved objects on display for at least two years from the year in which the expenditure is claimed. This relief may also be used on expenditure incurred -

  • on the installation, maintenance or replacement of an alarm system or
  • for public liability insurance

in an approved building/garden.

Approved Object

An approved object means an object (including a picture, sculpture, print, book, manuscript, piece of jewellery, furniture or other similar object) or a scientific collection owned by the owner/occupier of an approved building /garden which is determined -

  • by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, after consideration of evidence submitted to the Minister and any necessary consultation, to be an object which is intrinsically of significant national, scientific, historical or aesthetic interest, and
  • by the Revenue Commissioners to be an object to which reasonable access is afforded, and in respect of which reasonable facilities for viewing are provided to the public.

Reasonable access/viewing facilities in the case of an Approved Object

Where an approved object is on display in an approved building/garden, the following minimum obligations must be satisfied -

  • access for viewing the object must be available at the same time as it is afforded to the approved building/ garden
  • access is afforded for a period of at least 60 days in any one year including not less than 40 days (of which 10 days must be either Saturdays or Sundays) during the period 1 May–30 September inclusive at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner, subject to such temporary removal as is necessary for the purposes of the repair, maintenance or restoration of the object as is reasonable
  • the daily viewing times must be at least four hours and be such so as not to hinder the public from viewing the object, and
  • the admission price, if any, must be reasonable so as not to preclude the public from seeking access to the object.

The Revenue Commissioners must be satisfied that the above minimum access requirements are met. Before making a determination in respect of access/viewing facilities, clear evidence is required that the object is genuinely available for viewing by the public. The dates and times of such access must be advertised in local and/or national media and included on a sign erected to advertise the opening times of the building where the object is on view. After the determination is made, the Revenue Commissioners carry out checks to ensure that the level of public access for viewing the object, indicated when the determination was made, is continuing. Also, the public access for viewing the object in respect of which relief has been claimed can be examined as part of a Revenue audit on the owner/ occupier of those buildings. Where a building is classed as a tourist accommodation facility, the object should be displayed in a public place in the building.

Clawback of Relief

There is provision for revocation of a determination -

  • by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if the Minister considers that the object is no longer an object which is intrinsically of significant national, scientific, historical or aesthetic interest, and
  • by the Revenue Commissioners if reasonable access to the object ceases to be afforded, or reasonable facilities for viewing the object cease to be provided, or the object ceases to be owned by the person to whom relief in respect of that qualifying expenditure has been granted. Where the Revenue Commissioners revoke the determination, any relief granted in the two years prior to the date of revocation will be withdrawn.

Information

Information in respect of a determination by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht may be obtained from:

Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaelacht,
Architectural Policy Unit,
Built Heritage & Architectural Policy Section,
Newtown Road,
Wexford.

Tel: 053-9117511 / 9117387
Fax: 053-9117603

Information in respect of a determination regarding reasonable access and viewing facilities may be obtained from:

Office of the Revenue Commissioners,
Income and Capital Taxes Division,
1st Floor,
Stamping Building,
Dublin Castle,
Dublin 2.

Tel: 01-6748011 / 7024101
Fax: 01-6799287

August 2011


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