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International Agreements

Double Tax Treaties

Ireland has comprehensive double taxation agreements in force with 44 countries. The agreements generally cover income tax, corporation tax and capital gains tax (direct taxes).

New agreements with Greece and Iceland, which were signed in 2003, became effective for tax periods in 2005. Under the Icelandic treaty, the rate of taxation of dividends is limited to 5% or 15% of the amount of the gross dividend (depending on the taxpayer's ownership interest in the paying company). The taxation of royalties is limited to 10% in the case of royalties from copyrights of literary, artistic and scientific works, but royalties of a technical nature, such as from patents, are generally exempted. Payments of interest are also exempted from taxation in the source country. Both new agreements include exchange of information provisions.

An agreement replacing the existing treaty with Canada was also signed in 2003. Parliamentary procedures to bring the treaty into force were completed by Ireland in December 2004 and by Canada in April 2005. This treaty became effective for tax periods in 2006.

New treaties with Argentina, Egypt, Kuwait, Malta, Morocco, Singapore, Tunisia, Turkey and Ukraine are being negotiated.

Existing treaties with Cyprus, France and Italy are in the process of re-negotiation.

Almost all of Ireland's treaties provide for nil withholding tax on interest paid to a treaty partner; exceptions are Belgium, Canada and Japan, with the Israel and Poland treaties applying withholding tax to certain types of interest only. Royalty payments by Irish companies are also generally exempt from withholding, with the exceptions being Israel, Poland, Spain and Canada.

Although Ireland has a double tax treaty with the UK, the latter's Treasury announced in 2002 that it was proposing to classify Ireland as a 'tax haven', and would in future apply its 30% corporation tax rate to the profits of Irish subsidiaries of UK companies.

The Irish Department of Finance later announced that UK companies with subsidiaries based in the Republic were considering launching a legal challenge to the change, which had been brought on by the reduction of Ireland's corporation tax rate to an eventual 12.5%. The situation remains unclear.


Table of Treaties

Here is a list of some countries with which Ireland has signed and ratified Double Tax Treaties.

Australia
Austria
Belgium
Canada
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Italy
Israel
Japan
(South) Korea *
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Pakistan
Poland
Portugal
Russia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Swizerland
United Kingdom
United States
Zambia

Agreements were, as at January 2006, also in force with Bulgaria, Chile (subject to the necessary parliamentary procedures being completed in 2006; it is expected that they will become effective for tax periods in 2007), China, Croatia, India, Malaysia, Romania, the Slovak Republic, and Slovenia.

* In March 2006, the South Korean finance ministry drew up a list of several "tax havens" from which investors will be prevented from taking advantage of double tax treaties in an effort by the authorities to clamp down on 'treaty shopping'.

According to reports, Ireland, Labuan, Belgium and the Netherlands were among the countries and offshore territories named on the list.

Under new laws introduced from July 1, 2006, investors from these countries are subject to withholding taxes of up to 27.5% on South Korean income, including that derived from interest, dividends, and capital gains.

The move was the latest step by the South Korean government to clamp down on what it considered to be aggressive tax avoidance by foreign entities.

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