Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 492

Qualifying subsidiaries

Section 492 defines what constitutes a qualifying subsidiary for the purposes of the employment investment incentive scheme (EIIS).

• A qualifying subsidiary must be a 51 per cent subsidiary of the qualifying company, with no other person having control of it and no arrangements in place that could cause those conditions to cease to be met.
• The subsidiary must either be a company resident in Ireland, another EEA state or the UK that carries on (or intends to carry on) relevant trading activities from a fixed place of business in Ireland, or one that exists solely to provide support functions (purchasing goods, selling goods or rendering services) for the qualifying company or its subsidiaries.
• A subsidiary that exists solely to carry out support functions for the qualifying company may be established anywhere in the world.
• A subsidiary will not be treated as ceasing to qualify merely because it is wound up or dissolved for genuine commercial reasons, provided its net assets are distributed to members before the end of the relevant period or within three years of the commencement of the winding up, whichever is later.