Stamp Duty Reliefs for Irish Farmers: A Guide to Current Incentives

Consanguinity Relief

This reduces stamp duty to 1% on family farm transfers. This relief only applies to land transfers. To claim this relief, you must:

• be related to the transferor
• and
• farm the land for at least six years or lease it for a minimum of six years to someone who will farm it. If you are farming the land, you must:
• be registered for Income Tax
• hold a specified qualification or obtain one within a period of four years from the date you get the land
• or
• spend at least 50% of your time farming land (including this land transfer). If you lease the land to someone else to farm, that person must:
• hold a specified qualification or obtain one within 4 years from the date you acquired the land
• or
• spend at least 50% of their time farming land (including this land transfer).

Young Trained Farmer Relief

The Young Trained Farmer Relief means you pay no stamp duty when agricultural land is transferred to you, if you meet certain criteria. To claim this relief, you must:

• be under 35 years of age at the date the transfer of land was executed
• hold a relevant agricultural qualification, or obtain one within 3 years from the date the land is acquired (a 4-year timeframe applies to transfers executed before 15 May 2023)
• have submitted a business plan to Teagasc
• be registered for Income Tax
• and
• be the head of the farm holding. You must also intend to:
• spend at least 50% of your normal working time farming the transferred land
• and
• retain ownership of that land for a period of at least five years from the date of transfer. The relief is an EU State Aid. Restrictions apply to the amount of relief that may be claimed. These restrictions apply to instruments executed on or after 1 January 2019.

Farm Consolidation Relief

This relief is for farmers who buy and sell agricultural land to consolidate their holdings and improve the viability of their farms. It provides for a stamp duty rate of 1% on these transactions. To claim this relief, you must be a farmer who is an individual who spends 50% or more of your normal working time farming. If you are purchasing as a joint owner, only one of you must be a farmer. You must:

• sell land and buy other land to consolidate your holding within 24 months
• and
• have a consolidation certificate issued by Teagasc. You must also intend to:
• retain ownership of the land
• and
• use the land for farming for a period of at least five years from the date you claim the relief. The instruments effecting the sale and the purchase must be executed on or after 1 January 2018 and before 31 December 2025. You pay Stamp Duty on the difference between the price for which you sold land and price for which you bought other land.

Relief for leases of farmland

To claim this relief, you must:

• hold a specified qualification or obtain one within 4 years from the date of the lease
• or
• spend at least 50% of your time farming land (including this land transfer). The lease must:
• be executed on or after 1 July 2018
• and
• be for a period of at least 6 years and must not exceed 35 years.

There is a limit on the amount of relief that can be claimed.

Clawback of stamp duty reliefs

There are clawbacks for certain stamp duty reliefs. A clawback is where you have to repay money or benefits you have received because you have not met certain criteria or contractual obligations.

For some stamp duty reliefs you have to meet certain qualifying criteria for a number of years or the relief will be ‘clawed back’. This can be 2 or 5 years for stamp duty reliefs. If you fail to meet the criteria for the entire period, you must pay back the stamp duty and any interest.