Capital Acquisitions Tax Consolidation Act 2003 section 109

Payment of money standing in names of 2 or more persons

Section 109 prevents a banker from paying money from a joint deposit account to a surviving account holder following the death of another account holder, until clearance is received from the Revenue Commissioners.

• Where €50,000 or more is held in a joint deposit account (not a current account), the banker must obtain either a Revenue certificate confirming no inheritance tax is owed or written Revenue consent before paying any money to a survivor
• A penalty of €4,000 applies to any banker who pays from a joint account without the required clearance, and the burden of proving clearance was obtained rests with the banker
• It is a valid defence if the banker can prove reasonable grounds for believing that none of the joint account holders had died at the time of payment
• The restriction does not apply to joint accounts held by spouses or civil partners — the banker may pay the balance to the surviving spouse or civil partner without Revenue clearance