520. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Finance if matters raised in correspondence by a local business (details supplied) will be examined; the means by which his Department can facilitate businesses to develop; if he will address these issues separately; the status of same; and if his Department is willing to review the matter. [59997/25]

This Government is committed to ensuring that the tax incentives in place to encourage business investment, in particular indigenous SMEs are operating as intended and meet their policy objectives. I am committed to continuing to keep the current suite of enterprise tax measures under review to ensure that they are working properly, and fulfilling their potential for our economy, in line with my Department’s guidelines on Tax Expenditures.

Part 16 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA 1997) provides relief for investment in corporate trades, collectively known as Part 16 reliefs. The Part 16 reliefs are the Employment Investment Incentive (EII), Start-Up Relief for Entrepreneurs (SURE) and Start-Up Capital Incentive (SCI). The reliefs help provide SMEs and start-ups with alternative funding sources.

The Part 16 reliefs are State aid and come under the terms of Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014, known as the State Aid General Block Exemption Regulation, or GBER, which allows certain categories of State aid to be granted without prior notification by Member States to the European Commission. This means that, unlike UK equivalent schemes the schemes including EII must comply with the rules of the GBER.

A revision of the GBER was adopted by the European Commission on 1 July 2023 and a number of changes were made to the Part 16 reliefs in Finance (No.2) Act 2023 to reflect the revised GBER. The current GBER is due to expire on 31 December 2026 and the EU Commission is undertaking a consultation process ahead of a potential further revision of the GBER in 2026.

The Part 16 tax incentives have undergone significant change in recent years following reviews and feedback from stakeholders. In line with my Department’s Guidelines on Tax Expenditures these tax incentives are regularly reviewed to ensure they continue to operate as intended supporting SMEs and the Irish economy, while also representing value for money for the Exchequer and the taxpayer.

With regard to the concerns raised on share options and their tax treatment, the Deputy should note that last year, an independent Review of the taxation of Share-Based Remuneration was carried out by Indecon Economic Consultants, on behalf of my Department. The Review is available on the Department website at: www.gov.ie/pdf/?file=https://assets.gov.ie/306447/8b59a4ce-f548-4171-9792-a3fd3102d0d5.pdf. A public consultation was carried out as part of this review.

The Review made a number of specific recommendations on the taxation of Share Based Remuneration.

As part of the process of determining future policy in this area, consideration will be given to all recommendations made in the review. As part of these considerations, my Department has engaged with relevant stakeholders and will continue to do so.

It may also be of interest to the Deputy that, as announced on Budget Day and subject to European Commission approval, I intend to extend the Key Employee Engagement Programme (KEEP), until 31/12/2028. KEEP is a tax efficient share option scheme available to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Subject to certain conditions, KEEP allows for an exemption from income tax, USC and PRSI for employees on any gain realised on the exercise of a qualifying share options.