In 2023, the Revenue Commissioners stated that under undisclosed tax settlements, they received close to €750 million. Over €200 million of this amount was attributed to the financial and insurance sectors. The topmost 20 settlements yielded €383 million in tax payments, approximately €19.2 million each. The names and details of these settlements were not disclosed.
Throughout the year, the Revenue Commissioners settled 57,873 cases in which companies or individuals agreed to pay their tax arrears without publically listing their names or identities. As per the data made available through the Freedom of Information Act, the majority of the undisclosed settlements consisted of companies whose payments amounted to €612 million.
There were an additional 18,804 cases involving separate individuals that contributed €121 million to the total tax paid in lieu of arrears agreements. Around €6.1 million was settled by 1,215 different partnerships whilst about €5 million was paid by 213 estates trusts. Meanwhile, unincorporated bodies made settlements totaling €4.1 million across 828 cases. A minor number of miscellaneous cases also emerged.
Given the confidentiality of the tax agreements, the Revenue Commissioners refused to elaborate further on the matter, with the exception of confirming the total of €383 million paid under the top 20 settlements. The data was segmented by sector, revealing that over one-fourth of the unpublished settlements in 2023 came from finance and insurance sectors, adding up to €206 million.
The pharmaceutical sector followed next, amassing €74.9 million in settlements. This was succeeded by the food manufacturing sector with €57 million. Sectors with considerable tax payments also included construction at €29 million, public administration and defence with €32 million, and real estate activities yielding €28 million.
In other sectors, settlements from arts, entertainment, and recreation summed up to €7.2 million and publishing, audiovisual and broadcasting activities contributed €3.5 million to the total undisclosed settlements of 2023.
Under the Revenue Commissioners’ compliance information framework, companies have the option for non-disclosure of settlement details by making requisite disclosures, encompassing tax payments and any pending interest.
Legislation bars the publication of cases valued at less than €50,000, as well as other situations outlined in tax laws. An informational bulletin highlights that taxpayers taking advantage of the chance to review and rectify their tax compliance, or unveil any problems, can profit by means of reduced penalties and are exempt from the possibility of publication or legal action.
The bulletin also mentions: “Complete details regarding the opportunities available for taxpayers to rectify tax and duty defaults are laid out in the second chapter of the Code of Practice for Revenue Compliance Interventions.”