Your money - 27 June 2012 |
Q. I am about to employ some additional people in my company. I am wondering about the PRSI incentive scheme for employers and if I would be eligible for the exemption.
A. The Employer Job (PRSI) Incentive Scheme exempts employers from liability to pay their share of PRSI for certain employees. The scheme is open to employers who create new and additional jobs.
If you qualify for the scheme you will be exempt from employer’s PRSI for a maximum of 18 months from the date you were approved for the scheme (for jobs created after 1 January 2012).
To qualify for the Employer Job (PRSI) Incentive Scheme both the job you create and the person you employ must meet certain criteria. While you are waiting to be approved for the scheme, you should operate the standard employee and employer PRSI
In relation to the new employees, the person you employ must have been getting one of the following social welfare payments for a period of at least 6 months (156 days):
- Jobseeker’s Benefit
- Jobseeker’s Allowance
- One-Parent Family Payment
- Disability Allowance
Time spent on JobBridge or the Work Placement Programme is also reckonable for eligibility purposes. You can employ an eligible person directly from either of these schemes once the required 156 days criteria has been satisfied.
The job you are offering must:
- Be a new and additional post/job – employers are not allowed to substitute existing employees to avail of the scheme.
- Be for at least 30 hours per week
- Last for at least 6 months. If the employment ends within 6 months of getting the exemption, you may be liable to pay the employer’s PRSI contributions for that employee.
You can only get an exemption from employer’s PRSI for a limited number of employees. This limit is 5% of your existing workforce or, for smaller companies, a maximum of 5 new jobs.
Once you have a new employee and you feel you are eligible for the scheme, you should fill in a PRSI 20 form.
Send the PRSI 20 form with a current tax clearance certificate to the Department of Social Protection at the following address:
Employer Job (PRSI) Incentive Scheme
Department of Social Protection
Floor 2
Shannon Lodge
Carrick-on-Shannon
Leitrim
Ireland
LoCall: 1890 927 999
Homepage: www.welfare.ie
Q. I have recently received a letter from Revenue regarding mandatory electronic filing and payment of tax. Can you please advise what this means for me. I am a self-assessed income tax payer.
A. Mandatory electronic payments and filing, using Revenue’s Online Service (ROS) is part of Revenue’s strategy to establish the use of electronic channels as the normal way of conducting tax business.
The categories of taxpayer required to pay and file returns electronically from 1 June 2011 are:
- All companies
- All trusts
- All partnerships
- Self-employed individuals filing a return of payments to third parties (Form 46G)
- Self-employed individuals subject to the high earners restriction(Form RR1, Form 11)
- Self-employed individuals benefiting from or acquiring Foreign Life Policies, Offshore Funds or other Offshore products
- Self-employed individuals claiming a range of property based incentives (Residual Property and Industrial Buildings Allowances).
In addition, all stamp duty returns and payments presented on or after 1 June 2011 must be filed electronically.
Employers with 10 or more employees, not already covered in above are required to pay and file returns electronically from 1 October, 2011.
In addition from 1 June 2012 the following taxpayers must file electronically:
- VAT registered cases
- Individuals who avail of the reliefs and exemptions set out below:
| Description of Relief/Exemption |
| Retirement annuity contract payments and PRSA contributions |
| Overseas pension plans: migrant member relief |
| Retirement relief for sportspersons |
| Relief for AVCs |
| Artists exemption |
| Woodlands exemption |
| Patent income exemption |
| Income on which transborder relief is claimed |
| Business expansion scheme relief |
| Film relief |
| Significant buildings/gardens relief |
| Interest relief: loan to acquire share in company or partnership. |
To register for ROS (Revenue Online Service) you should go to the Revenue website at www.revenue.ie.
If you have any queries on money or taxation matters which you would like answered, please send them to "Your Money", c/o Examiner Publications (Cork) Ltd., City Quarters, Lapps Quay, Cork
