Farm Finance: Is the review of Agricultural Relief only skin deep?

The phenomenon of non-farming persons buying up land for tax purposes as a means of passing on wealth has become more than just an anecdote

Figures from the Revenue Commissioners for 2019 show that 1,413 beneficiaries availed of Agricultural Relief at an estimated cost to the Exchequer of €159m.

Agricultural Relief for the uninitiated is the main tax relief that allows farm land and certain other farming assets to effectively pass from one generation to the next without significant gift or inheritance tax.

The relief works by reducing the taxable value of a gift or inheritance by 90% where the recipient meets certain requirements. Figures from the Revenue Commissioners for 2019 show that 1,413 beneficiaries availed of Agricultural Relief at an estimated cost to the Exchequer of €159m.