Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 208

Lands owned and occupied, and trades carried on by, charities

Section 208 exempts from income tax certain income of charities, including rental income from land and property, trading and professional profits, and farming profits, subject to conditions on how and when those profits are applied.

• A charity (any body of persons or trust established for charitable purposes only) is exempt from income tax on income from lands, tenements or hereditaments it owns and occupies, provided the income is applied solely to charitable purposes within the required timeframe.
• Trading and professional profits of a charity are exempt where the profits are applied solely to charitable purposes within the required timeframe, and either the trade or profession is carried out as part of a primary purpose of the charity, or the work is mainly carried on by the charity's beneficiaries.
• Farming profits of a charity are exempt without the requirement that those profits be applied solely to charitable purposes.
• The charity must apply its income to charitable purposes by the end of the fifth year of assessment after the year in which the income arose, though Revenue may extend this period if satisfied the charity is in the process of applying the funds for charitable purposes.