IRELAND

COUNTRY

IRELAND

REGION

Northwestern Europe

POPULATION

5,224,884 (July 2021 est.)

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Ireland is the second largest island in the British Isles. It has a mild climate and a green rolling landscape due to the Gulf Stream and the proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. It is an egalitarian country with about 4.7 million inhabitants. Dublin is the capital of the Republic of Ireland.

Ireland has a common law legal system and has been a member of the EU since 1973.

Company law in Ireland has been reformed as part of the overall harmonisation of the company law of all member states.

EU Directives are usually implemented in Ireland by way of ministerial regulations in the form of statutory instruments under section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972. Regulations adopted by the Council of the EU are directly effective in Ireland and do not need to be separately implemented into Irish law although they are often accompanied by statutory instruments to facilitate their interpretation and application.

An Irish court can refer certain questions on points of EU law raised in proceedings before it to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for its determination. The Irish court is then responsible for applying the law as determined by the CJEU to the facts of the case.

Companies are the main form of business vehicle used in Ireland, which include:

• Private limited companies.
• Designated activity companies (DACs) limited by shares.
• DACs limited by guarantee.
• Companies limited by guarantee.
• Public limited companies.
• Public unlimited companies with shares.
• Public unlimited companies without shares.
• Private unlimited companies with shares.
• Societas Europaea (deemed public companies).

WIFI SPEED

Average connection speed (Mbit/s) – 19.2
Median 5G connection speed (Mbit/s)- 6.28
Broadband average connection speed (Mbit/s)- 112.81

ELECTRICAL OUTLET

Ireland operates on a 230V supply voltage and 50Hz.

PER CAPITA GDP

$86,781 (2019 est.)
$83,471 (2018 est.)
$78,128 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars

CLIMATE

temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time

RESIDENCE-BY-INVESTMENT

The Ireland Immigrant Investor Program was established in 2012 to allow wealthy individuals and families from outside the European Union to obtain residency in Ireland in exchange for making an approved investment in the Irish economy.

Investments Options

• Enterprise Investment of at least EUR 1 million in either a single Irish enterprise, or several enterprises for a minimum of 3 years
• A minimum investment of EUR 1 million in an approved Investment Fund which must be held for at least 3 years
• A minimum investment of EUR 2 million in an approved Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) listed on the Irish Stock Exchange which must be held for at least 3 years
• An Endowment (non-refundable donation) of EUR 500,000 in the arts, sports, health, cultural or educational fields (EUR 400,000 also available)

Key Benefits

• 2-Year Residence Visa for successful applicants
• Opportunity for visa renewal after 2 years of residence visa
• Dependents included
• Ability to live, work and study in Ireland
• Possibility to apply for permanent residence or citizenship if certain requirements are met

Processing time

• The full process will take around 3-4 months

NATURAL RESOURCES

natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite

ETHNIC GROUPS

Irish 82.2%, Irish travelers 0.7%, other White 9.5%, Asian 2.1%, Black 1.4%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2.6% (2016 est.)

LANGUAGES

English (official, the language generally used), Irish (Gaelic or Gaeilge) (official, spoken by approximately 39.8% of the population as of 2016; mainly spoken in areas along Ireland’s western coast known as gaeltachtai, which are officially recognized regions where Irish is the predominant language)

RELIGIONS

Roman Catholic 78.3%, Church of Ireland 2.7%, other Christian 1.6%, Orthodox 1.3%, Muslim 1.3%, other 2.4%, none 9.8%, unspecified 2.6% (2016 est.)

MEDIAN AGE

total: 37.8 years
male: 37.4 years
female: 38.2 years (2020 est.)

URBANIZATION

urban population: 63.9% of total population (2021)
rate of urbanization: 1.15% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

PHYSICIAN DENSITY

3.31 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

GOVERNMENT TYPE

Parliamentary republic

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

4.98 % (2019 est.)
5.78 % (2018 est.)

TAXES

Personal Income Tax Rate (highest marginal tax rate)

• individuals without dependent children – 20%
• single or widowed persons qualifying for the One-Parent Family tax credit – 20%
• married couples – 20% earned income
• remainder all categories – 40%
• Individuals are tax resident for a particular tax year if they are present in Ireland either for 183 days or more in that year.
• 280 days or more over that year and the previous tax year taken together.

An employee is not regarded as resident for any tax year in which he spends 30 days or less in Ireland. A “day” in this context means any part of a day.

Corporate Income Tax Rate (excluding dividend taxes)

Ireland’s “headline” corporation tax rate is 12.5%, however, foreign multinationals pay an aggregate § Effective tax rate (ETR) of 2.2–4.5% on global profits “shifted” to Ireland, via Ireland’s global network of bilateral tax treaties.

Companies incorporated in Ireland are generally considered resident in Ireland unless a double tax agreement regards the company as resident in a territory other than Ireland. Ireland’s double tax agreements contain tie-breaker provisions to resolve cases where a company may be considered resident of both Ireland and another territory. Where an entity is a resident of both states it will normally be deemed resident in the state in which it is effectively managed. The MLI may cause this tie-breaker provision to be replaced by a competent authority determination in some treaties when the MLI comes into force in Ireland.

A company may also be tax resident in Ireland if it is centrally managed and controlled in Ireland. The test is a factual test which is generally directed at the highest level of control of the business of the company.

Non-tax resident business

Non-resident companies must pay corporation tax on Irish source income (which includes, for example, trading income and deposit interest from a bank account), subject to any relief provided by a double tax treaty. Non-resident companies that trade through a branch or agency in Ireland must also pay corporation tax on branch profits.

Irrespective of residence, companies may be liable to pay stamp duty, if an instrument is executed in Ireland, or if an instrument is executed outside Ireland, but relates to property situated in Ireland or something to be done in Ireland.

Special Tax Regimes

SARP for those employees who arrive in Ireland between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2022. The relief is available for a maximum of five consecutive tax years, both to Irish domiciled and non-Irish domiciled individuals who are required by their existing employer organization to come to Ireland between 2012 and 2022 to work here for a minimum period of 12 months. The individual can be engaged under an Irish or non-Irish employment contract.

Qualifying individuals will be entitled to exclude 30% of employment earnings over EUR 75,000 from the charge to Irish tax. There is a maximum income limit of EUR 1 million, upon which relief may be claimed.

Ireland has signed comprehensive double tax treaties with 74 countries, of which 73 are in effect, including treaties with all EU member states, the US, China, India and all OECD member countries. Ireland signed a new double tax treaty with Kazakhstan which entered into effect on 1 January 2018. Negotiations for double tax treaties with Azerbaijan, Oman, Turkmenistan and Uruguay have recently concluded. The ratification procedures required to bring the Protocol to the existing treaty with Belgium into force have recently completed. Ireland generally grants the benefit of treaties on their signature, pending ratification.

When a double taxation agreement does not exist with a particular country there are provisions in the Irish Taxes Consolidation Acts 1997 which allow unilateral relief against double taxation in respect of certain types of income.