Tax exemption to benefit farmers dispensing of payment entitlements

A capital gains tax exemption is to be provided in this year’s Finance Bill to certain farmers who dispose of their single farm payment entitlements on foot of changes being introduced under the new Common Agriculture Policy.

The announcement yesterday by Finance Minister Michael Noonan was welcomed by farm leaders who said capital gains tax would have cost farmers a lot of money.

A technical change, made at EU level to the new CAP arrangements for replacing the single payment scheme for farmers with the basic scheme after this year, would impact on farmers who let 100% of their farmland and their single farm payment entitlements.