Revenue losses - Vulture funds use tax loophole

UP to 90,000 Irish loans are now owned by foreign investors known as vulture funds. Like the birds of prey they are named after, they are scavengers with the sole purpose of looking after themselves.

Individual distressed mortgage holders already know how heartless they can be which makes the asset disposals by Nama to US vulture funds all the more worrying.

Vulture funds are not subject to the same Central Bank oversight or rules of conduct that banks are and, as we have now learned, these funds are making multi-million euro profits in Ireland but paying only tiny amounts in tax here because of a loophole in our revenue laws.

As the Sunday Business Post revealed, several funds made identical payments of just €250 to the Revenue Commissioners. That is an intolerable situation that cannot be allowed to continue.

The Department of Finance has launched an investigation but what is needed is the immediate closure of this loophole through legislation, with the Dáil recalled if necessary.