Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 847

Tax relief for certain branch profits

Section 847 provided for an exemption from corporation tax on foreign branch profits and from capital gains tax on foreign branch gains where the profits or gains arose to a company that created substantial employment in Ireland as a result of a substantial investment of permanent capital in the State.

• A company that submitted an investment plan to the Minister for Finance and was certified as a "qualified company" (before 15 February 2001) could avail of exemption from corporation tax on profits from specified foreign branch trading activities and from CGT on gains from assets used for those activities.
• The exemption applied only to trading activities carried on through a branch or agency in a territory specified in the Minister's certificate, and the Minister had to be satisfied that the investment plan would result in substantial permanent capital investment and substantial new employment in the State.
• The relief ceased to apply for accounting periods ending after 31 December 2010, but unused losses from the exempt foreign branch activities could be carried forward and set against future profits of that branch from 2011 onwards under section 396(1).
• Gains on the disposal of Irish land, Irish mineral rights, exploration or exploitation rights in a designated area, or shares deriving their value from such assets remained chargeable to CGT notwithstanding the exemption.