Accountancy representative warns of dangers from corporation tax changes

The exchequer could suffer if Ireland makes unilateral changes to its tax system in response to international pressures, an accountant representing the profession has warned.

On Tuesday the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland tax policy committee, PwC head of tax Feargal O’Rourke, said Ireland will not be able to sustain its current corporate residency rules in the context of the global debate on corporation tax.

He made the comment when welcoming the decision of the Department of Finance to hold a public consultation process on how Ireland should react to the current OECD base erosion and profit shifting (Beps) project, which is preparing recommendations on how to change global tax rules so as to counter aggressive tax avoidance by multinationals.

Yesterday Brian Keegan, director of taxation with Chartered Accountants Ireland, who has been making representations on the profession's behalf to the OECD, said there were risks involved in making unilateral moves. "While some changes are necessary, inevitable and indeed are already happening – last year's amendment to the Corporate Residence rules was arguably an early consequence of the Beps project – there are risks to the national tax take if we do too much on a unilateral basis."

Last year, Minister for Finance Michael Noonan changed the law so that no Irish incorporated company could be "stateless" for tax residency purposes. However there is further pressure on Ireland to change the law that allows Irish companies be tax resident offshore, if they are deemed to be managed and controlled from such jurisdictions.

“If Ireland is the only country to change its residence rules, we will simply push business elsewhere, or indeed create further anomalies which could be exploited,” Mr Keegan said.