Local Property Tax: Exemptions and Reliefs

Revenue recently released this e-brief update on Property Tax in relation to exemptions and relief, and below is the full list of updates.    

Some exemptions will remain, and some will cease at the end of this year.  See below for more details.

Part 2 of the local property tax (LPT) Tax and Duty Manuals (TDM’s) contains the 13 manuals that deal with the exemptions from the charge to LPT. These have now been updated to reflect the changes made by the Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Act 2021 and the arrangements that will apply in relation to the new valuation date (1 November 2021) and the valuation period 2022 to 2025.

Some of the exemptions will cease to be available after the end of 2021. These are the exemptions for residential properties that are:

• unsold and unused trading stock of a builder/property developer in May 2013 (section 6) and subsequent purchases of such properties (section 9)
• purchased by a ‘first-time buyer’ during 2013 (section 8)
• situated in a specified unfinished housing estate (section 10).

Most of the current exemptions will continue for the second valuation period covering the years 2022 to 2025. These are the exemptions for residential properties that are:

• fully subject to commercial rates (section 4)
• vacated for an extended period by a person with a long-term mental or physical infirmity (section 5(2)(a))
• registered nursing homes (section 5(2)(b))
• used by a charity or public body to provide special needs accommodation (section 7)
• used by a charity in connection with the provision of recreational activities (section 7A)
• occupied by permanently and totally incapacitated individuals (section 10B).

While the exemption for residential properties damaged by pyrite (section 10A) will continue into the second valuation period, it is being phased out. The latest date on or before which the qualifying condition for the exemption can apply is 21 July 2023. With a fixed 6-year period of exemption, the exemption will cease to apply by the end of 2029 at the latest.

Two new TDM’s have been created in relation to an exemption for properties that are:

• owned by a North-South Implementation Body established under the British-Irish Agreement Act 1999 (section 10C)
• eligible for the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme (section 10D).

The TDM (in Part 4 of the LPT TDM’s) dealing with the reduction in chargeable value for properties that have been adapted for occupation by people with a disability has also been updated.