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1894, by abolishing the exemption from estate duty
in respect of foreign immovable property, other
than land situate outside the State.
Section
23 is aimed at ensuring that a claim for
estate duty will arise on the death of a life tenant
who after the passing of the Act terminates a settle
ment by acquiring directly or indirectly within five
years of his death the interest of the person or
persons to whom the property would otherwise have
passed under the terms of the settlement on the life
tenant's death.
Section
24 provides that death benefits under
non-contributory superannuation schemes will be
liable to estate duty unless the aggregate value of the
benefits does not exceed £5,000 and they are payable
to the widow or dependent children of the deceased.
It will apply to superannuation schemes whenever
created in connection with a death occurring after
the passing of the Act. There is marginal relief for
estate duty where the death benefit exceeds £5,000.
Section
25 aims at ensuring that the proviso to
section 4 of the Finance Act, 1894 (non-aggregability
of property passing on the death in which he never
had an interest) shall cease to have effect as regards
property passing or deemed to pass on a death
occurring after the passing of the Act unless it is
proved to the satisfaction of the Revenue Com
missioners that it did not pass directly or indirectly
under a disposition made by the deceased (which
term includes the payment of money).
Section
26 gives partial relief from estate duty in
respect of certain policies
of assurance which
became indefeasibly vested in a donee more than
five years before the death of the assured.
By
section
27 the existing period of three years
prior to death as affecting gifts
inter vivas
is extended
to five years where the deceased dies after the
passing of the Act with relief on a sliding scale
where the death occurs in the third, fourth or fifth
years of the period. It will not apply where the gift
was made or a release effected three years or more
before the passing of the Act.
Section
28 provides that the exemption from estate
duty in relation to gifts in consideration of marriage
is to be confined to gifts made to the parties to the
marriage and to the issue of the marriage.
Section
29 provides that in estates not exceeding
£15,000 value estate duty on benefits passing to the
widow or dependent children of the deceased is to
be abated. The abatement is limited to £150 os. od.
in the case of the widow and £100 in the case of each
dependent child.
Section
30 abolishes the i% rates of legacy duty
and succession duty payable by a spouse lineal
ancestor or lineal descendant and the supplementary
io/-% rate of succession duty payable in certain
cases.
Part IV.
Stamp Duties.
The Bill contains proposals for relief from capital
and transfer stamp duty in the case of reconstructions
or amalgamations of companies. Broadly speaking
the conditions are (i) a company (referred to as the
transferee company) is registered after the passing
of the Finance Act, 1965, or the nominal capital of
such a company has been increased. (2) The company
is registered or established or has increased its
capital with a view to the acquisition of the under
taking or of not less than 90% of the issued share
capital of a particular existing company. (3) The
consideration for the acquisition (except such part as
consists in the transfer to or discharge by the trans
feree company of liabilities) of the existing company
consists as to not less than 90% thereof in the issue
of shares in the transferee company to the existing
company (where an undertaking is to be acquired)
or
in the issue of shares in the transferee company in
exchange (where shares are to be acquired). Two
kinds of relief are proposed:
(a)
The nominal share capital of the transferee
company for the purpose of computing stamp
duty chargeable thereon is to be treated as
being reduced in the manner stated in section
30 (i) of the Bill.
(b) Ad valorem
stamp duty will not be chargeable
on any instrument effecting the transfer of the
undertaking or shares or on the assignment
of any debts of the existing company to the
transferee company.
The following conditions should be noted :
1. The
instrument must be
adjudged
duly
stamped.
2. In the case of an instrument of transfer to a
company within the meaning of the Companies Act,
1963, the relief from the
ad valorem
transfer duty
will not be given unless the instrument is executed
within twelve months from the date of registration
of the transferee company or from the date of the
resolution for the increase of the nominal share
capital thereof or alternatively unless the instrument
was made for the purpose of effecting a conveyance
or transfer in pursuance of an agreement filed or
particulars of which have been filed with
the
Registrar of Companies within the said period of
twelve months.
3. Relief from duty on the release or assignment of
debts of the existing company will apply only to
debts (other than debts due to banks or trade
creditors) which are incurred two or more years