DANIEL AND JESSICA are married and in their early 60s and live in the Dublin suburbs.
Daniel owns a graphic design company and employs four staff, while Jessica does not work outside the home. They have two children, both of whom are attending university. Daniel's annual salary as a company director is €162,000 and he maximises his personal pension contributions to the 40 per cent limit on which tax relief is available. Daniel is not pleased that the annual earnings limit has been reduced to €150,000.
Jessicas elderly father lives nearby and has Alzheimer's disease. As he needs assistance caring for himself, Daniel and Jessica pay €25,000 towards the cost of nursing care in his home. They claim the dependent relative tax credit and the qualifying medical expenses for the homecare. They are not happy that the Minister has limited medical expenses relief to the standard rate of tax.
While Daniel is happy that the Minister has not increased the higher rate of tax beyond 41 per cent, he is less than happy about the introduction of the income levy. Daniel and Jessica are happy that the Minister did not make any changes whereby higher earning families would be obliged to pay for third-level undergraduate studies.
Overall, Daniel and Jessica will be worse off by €292 per month.