Business tax relief & retirement

Retirement planning is not all about pensions

Planning your business exit, is a key component of your financial plan. If you are aged 45 or over, then you should get financial and tax planning advice to ensure that you have all qualifying factors considered, particularly age related conditions.

It is critical to consider and review your exit plan or retirement - this could be a business transfer to children, business sale to a third party or even working until death.

Pensions are a valuable mechanism to extract wealth from your business

- however, pensions should not be considered in isolation.

We want you to also consider and prepare to maximise other reliefs and how these potentially could be utilised.

Firstly, on the death of a business owner, where business assets are transferred under Will there is no charge to Capital Gains Tax. So, we always advocate that a business owner has an up to date Will.

Currently, the next two most significant reliefs some of our customers have benefited from are "Retirement Relief" and "Entrepreneurial Relief"

Retirement Relief

Retirement Relief provides for  complete exemption OR reduction in Capital Gains Tax payable on the disposal of certain "qualifying assets" by individuals who are aged 55 or more on the date of disposal.Importantly, the relief is available even if the owner remains actively engaged in the business after the disposal.

Retirement relief conditions checklist;

  • Claimant must be an individual

  • Must be aged 55 at date of disposal.

  • Relief applies to "Qualifying Assets" (rental property, investment assets are non qualifying)

  • The Claimant must have owned the "Qualifying Assets" and used those assets for the purpose of the business for the last 10 years.

Where shares in a family company, the individual holds either (a) at least 25% of the voting rights of the company OR (b) at least 10% of the voting rights, and not less 75% of the voting rights are controlled by members of his/her family.

Disposals to a child:(may include certain grandchildren, nephew/niece who has worked in business full time for 5 years and foster child)

Where the individual is 55 or over they will receive full exemption from CGT on disposals of "Qualifying Assets" to child.

NB If the individual is 66, the exemption is restricted to "Qualifying Assets" with a market value up to €3,000,000.00 The excess over €3,000,000.00 is subject to CGT.++relief will be clawed back if child disposes of the asset within 6 years. Parents pre relief liability will then become payable by the child.

Disposals to persons other than a child: If aged 55 to 65, full CGT retirement relief available if the gain on the disposal of the "Qualifying Assets" is no more than €750,000.00

*NB If the individual is 66, the ceiling for the relief on "Qualifying Assets" is limited to €500,000.00

**there is potentially scope for "Marginal Relief", where CGT may not exceed 50.00% of the difference between "proceeds" and €750,000.00 (or €500,000.00).

IMPORTANT PLANNING FOR RETIREMENT RELIEF: Businesses owner by married couple of civil partners could potentially have "Qualifying Assets" of up to €1,500,000.00 (or €1,000,000.00) WITHOUT incurring any CGT liability

Entrepreneurial Relief

From 01  January 2017, a reduced rate of 10.00% CGT may be applied to gains arising from the disposal of the whole or the part of the "chargeable business assets" by a "relevant individual".

The reduced rate only applies on a lifetime limit of €1,000,000.00. The higher 33.00% CGT rate will apply on any gains arising in excess of €1,000,000.00Chargeable business assets = asset used by the qualifying business, including goodwill.

Entrepreneurial relief qualification checklist;

  • Owned the chargeable assets for 3 years prior to disposal

  • Own more the 5.00% of the ordinary share capital in the "Qualifying Company"

  • Be a "Qualifying Person", where individual has been a director or employee of the Qualifying Company in a managerial or technical capacity, required to spend 50.00% or more of their time working in managerial or technical capacity in the company, and served in that capacity for a continuous period of 3 out of the 5 years immediately prior to the disposal of the chargeable business assets.

Want to know more? We are available to discuss your options, and we look forward to hearing from you.

Our job is to help you choose a product and structure that will help you meet your goals.

telephone | 091441188 and/or email | office@nelsonlife.ie

RETIREMENT & PENSIONS |  INVESTMENTS | FINANCIAL PLANNING | LIFE INSURANCE

Nelson Life Limited trading as Nelson Life is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

WARNING: Past performance is not a reliable guide to future performance. WARNING: The value of your investment may go down as well as up. WARNING: You may lose some or all of the money you invest. WARNING: These funds may be affected by changes in currency exchange rates. WARNING: If you invest into this product you will have access until you retire (Pension Products). WARNING: The above content does not constitute investment advice, as it does not take into account the investment objectives, knowledge and experience of financial situation of any particular person. Prospective investors are advised to make their own assessment of the information contained herein and to obtain professional advice suitable to their own individual circumstances. WARNING: The information contained in this document is based on our understanding of current tax legislation and the current Revenue Commissioners interpretation thereof and is subject to change including retrospectively without notice. This is intended as a general guide only and is not a substitute for professional tax, legal and investment advice. 

Previous
Previous

Pension options

Next
Next

Nelson Life 2018 Budget Summary