Double Taxation Agreement (DTA)

You may have to pay tax on your foreign rental income in the country your property is located in and also in Ireland. This will depend on your residence or domicile status.

You may be able to deduct some, or all, of the foreign tax you have paid when you are calculating how much Irish tax you owe. Whether or not Ireland has a Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with the country your property is located in will affect the amount that you can reduce your Irish tax by.

Some countries charge a tax on deemed rental income - rental income you are expected to have earned from renting out the property even if it was not rented out. However, it is important to be aware that you can't offset this tax against the amount of Irish tax you owe.

If there is no DTA in place between Ireland and the country in which your property is located, you are eligible to claim a deduction for any foreign tax that you have paid. When you are calculating the tax that will be due in Ireland you can reduce the liability with this deduction.

DTA – residency status

Non-resident

If you have income that you will pay Irish and foreign tax on, you may be entitled to claim relief from your country of residence. This is possible if your country of residence has a Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with Ireland.

You can only receive a refund for the Irish tax that you pay. A claim for a refund on tax paid outside Ireland must be made to the tax office in that country and not in Ireland. You can't claim a credit for foreign tax against the income you have earned in Ireland if you have received a refund on the foreign tax.

Resident

If you are normally resident and domiciled in Ireland, you will be liable to pay Irish tax on your worldwide income (including foreign income earned abroad). But, if you have already paid tax on this income, you may be entitled to claim a credit for foreign tax deducted under the terms of a DTA.

Non-resident directors of Irish incorporated companies

If you are a director of an Irish incorporated company (and hold an Irish Public Office), you will have to pay Irish tax on the income from this directorship regardless of:

• your tax residence position
• where your duties are carried out

However, you may, in some cases, be entitled to claim tax relief on your directorship income under the terms of a DTA between Ireland and your country of residence.