Property Tax Deductions From Social Welfare and Pensions

There have probably been a lot of people worrying about the news that the new Local Property Tax can be deducted from Social Welfare payments and state pensions .

When you fill in the Local Property Tax return – you will have the option to choose to have payments deducted at source from certain payments made by the Dept of Social Protection (formerly known as Social Welfare) Deductions can  be requested to be taken from the following types of payments :

A State Pension (Contributory)
B State Pension (Non-Contributory)
C Widow/er’s Contributory Pension
D Widow/er’s Non-Contributory Pension
E State Pension (Transition)
F One Parent Family Payment
G Invalidity Pension
H Carer’s Allowance
I Disability Allowance
J Blind Pension

If you don’t complete and return the Property Tax Return – Revenue have the power to deduct payments from Dept of Social Protection payments  “at source”  even if you don’t ask for it.

The Revenue can get the Property Tax deducted from any regular social welfare or state pension payments (not just the ones listed above).

Payments can also be deducted from the wages of working people.

BUT-  any deductions will not be allowed to bring the weekly payment below the level of Supplementary Welfare Allowance ( €186 for a single person over 25 and €310.80 for a couple) . So – anyone just on the basic Supplementary Welfare amounts will not get property tax deductions  taken from welfare.
It is possible though that others on higher levels of welfare payments could get deductions taken off to pay the property tax. The most common weekly amount of the property tax  is expected to be  €315 a year which works out at  just over €6 a week .

There are to going to be no property tax waivers or exemptions  for people on low incomes . No rebates , waivers , reductions or  discounts. Delaying or deferring  the payment is the only mitigation available.

Deferral
When you complete the Property Tax return you can choose to defer the  payment – (This just means to delay it ) but only  if your income is below a certain amount  and the property is your sole residence.

Deferral of 100% of the tax is an option for  single people with a  gross income  below €15000 a year (€288 a week) . For couples the income limit is €25000 a year (€480 a week).

So the majority of people on social welfare  and basic pensions will probably be able to defer the payment if they choose to.

You can also choose  to defer up to 50% of the LPT if you are single and your gross income is below €25,000 single  (480 a week)  or €35,000  for a couple .  (€673 a week)

For Owner-occupiers who have a  mortgage, you can deduct  80% of mortgage interest from your gross income when working out your eligibility for deferral  – but this option is only available up to the end of 2017 .

Deferral will incur a 4% annual interest rate.  (After 5 years – an LPT charge for 1 year  of €405 will have interest of  €99 added)  All deferred amounts an interest must be paid on the sale of the house or on transfer (i.e after death)~

~More on Property Tax Deferral Here

More Information about Property Tax

7 thoughts on “Property Tax Deductions From Social Welfare and Pensions

  1. I think it is a discrace that the goverment will take property tax off the old aged pensioners and off the people on disability benefit have these people no consions and the big pensions they are on.I have a reletave and he can barley afford to live from day to day.

  2. Is it possible to opt for a deferral where there are two property.s. one with a mortgage and the owners are unemployed and on low income.?

  3. This is a disgrace. My mother worked hard throughout her life to pay her mortgage off and now she lives alone, on the state pension, happy in the knowledge that sheprovided herself withs a permanent roof over her head. There’s no way she can afford this tax. All for the privilege of living in this country!

  4. We could all just take the roof off our houses and then it would not be classed as a house.(Roofless Ireland)
    It is just daylight robbery what the politicians are doing to the people of Ireland and getting away with it. The majority of them are so corrupt they should be behind bars.
    Millions spent on tribunals and no returns.
    Millions spent on re surfacing good roads to use up the funds so they can get the same or more the following year.
    They reduced the fuel allowance by 6 weeks .
    They reduced the electricity allowance
    They reduced the phone line allowance
    They took away the Christmas Bonus
    They make us pay extra for our medicine
    Now property tax
    Why not just open a concentration camp for us all.
    You rob our country blind and line your pockets with what you have stolen from we the People who built this country ( Shame on you)
    You work all your life to provide a home for your children with no help from the Government and then they want a piece of it.
    What is next on their agenda !!!
    Bedroom tax !!!
    More than 1 child tax!!
    Air tax !!!
    Don’t worry they are thinking that way just a matter of time.
    They might consider extermination for over 60s that would save millions to give to the banks.
    I could go on for eternity but what good would it do.

  5. Can’t really complain now. When this was proposed and implemented nothing was done, few folks moaned, but it would have taken action to the streets, like the Spanish & Greeks did, they got a much better deal from Germany as a result, we sat back and just moaned. The government have advisers and social experts that would have advised them this will go down like the smoking ban for example, moan at first and then ahh sure it will be grand attitude.

    We had a duty of care for the next generation and we failed them. At this point its open season for Enda and Eamonn and there is nothing anyone can do about it now, except moan.

    Time for action has come and gone folks, on this topic anyways.

  6. Just wait until they ( the politicians ) come knocking on the doors in the next general election , id hate to be one of them , this is treachery shame on them , they have totalled this country , what a bunch of hypocritical liars they are , im truly sickened by this , were the laughing stock of europe

  7. Mother of ten and God knows how many granchildren…
    We the old age people of Ireland are paying for rich people, bankers, developers and T.D. who have robbed us of our right, to grow old and live in our own house without having the worry of household tax, water tax and all the rest.
    What kind of leaders are Kenny and Gillmore?
    Robbing the poor to pay the rich.
    There is no Robinhood to help us

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