‘Give it Back’ Tax Campaign Launched

€375 Million+ owed to taxpayers for 2004 alone

Fine Gael launched a national campaign in 2005 called ‘Give it Back’ to highlight the issue of overpaid taxes by PAYE taxpayers. The party wants a vigorous and targeted programme to make sure that any money overpaid is returned to taxpayers.

Commenting on the issue, Fine Gael Deputy Leader Richard Bruton TD said:

Ordinary taxpayers are making very substantial tax overpayments. I estimate that in 2004,the likely overpayment of tax in respect of just four items comes to almost €375million. Over a four-year period this would amount to a massive €1,500 million.

The overpayments I estimate are:

• Health                €210million
• Bin charges        € 33million
• Private rents       € 55million
• Homecarers        € 74million

There are many other areas of potential overpayments,such as in third level education, in Trade Union membership fees,for Incapacitated Persons employing home help,in Speech Therapy,in Psychological Assessments and so on,that could push this figure higher again.

Ordinary compliant taxpayers must have confidence that the mandate of the Revenue Commissioners will include repaying overpaid tax wherever the Revenue has evidence that this has happened. Otherwise the Revenue Commissioners are party to the ripping-off of compliant taxpayers, particularly those in the PAYE system. If the Revenue Commissioners came across a transaction where they suspected tax was not being paid, they would immediately institute a trawl to identify those who might possibly have been involved in the chain. No similar effort is made to identify refunds that are due, even where information could easily be accessed.

I welcome the changes in this year’s Finance Bill, which offer many more self-service options to taxpayers on-line, and which now allow the Revenue Commissioners to repay tax without a formal claim from the taxpayer. However, this still doesn’t go far enough.

• The Revenue Commissioners should proactively identify refunds where information on these can be accessed by the Revenue Commissioners.



• The period over which a person can reclaim overpaid tax should be extended to eight years.



• The Revenue Commissioners should pay interest in respect of overpaid tax even if the overpaid tax was not due to an error of the Revenue Commissioners. They have effectively had an interest-free loan from the taxpayer and they should make good the use of the money that the taxpayer has forgone.

Of course, some of these will be much easier for the Revenue Commissioners than for others. It should be a relatively easy matter to identify relief in respect of payments to recognised authorities such as local authorities,colleges, health authorities, etc. Others would be more difficult. However, the Revenue can easily facilitate taxpayers by having simple checklists as well as public information campaigns.

I hope that by taking this initiative we are starting a process that the Revenue Commissioners will take up with enthusiasm. In the long-term, confidence in our tax code relies on compliant taxpayers believing that they will be fairly treated.

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