November 15th, 2005
McGahern urges government on artist tax breaks
John McGahern was among a delegation who met yesterday with Brian Cowen and the government yesterday in an effort to save Ireland’s artist tax exemption. McGahern said in The Irish Times that if his entire income from writing from the last 40 years was added up for taxation purposes, “It would come to a great deal less than the earnings of the national schoolteacher I once was.”
I know various full-time artists and writers who barely make a living on their creative earnings, so it would be a real shame if the exemption was dispensed with. However, anyone whose work yields substantial earnings, regardless of their field, should have to contribute something to the economy. Perhaps a ceiling or cut-off point in earnings delineated in years rather than a static annual payment could be arranged? Cecilia Ahern’s earning from her, ahem, writing is well-documented as reaching millions to date so why should a millionaire - artist, writer or businessman - be exempt?
Fair play to Fianna F�il Senator Martin Mansergh who added that people with full-time, pensionable jobs such as politicians, should not qualify for exemption on books they write.
November 15th, 2005 at 12:24 pm
To the best of my memory, the argument has been that in practice, while it is fully justifiable in theory, to administer a cut off point etc would cost the state more than the money it would bring in. The Department of Finance ran the sums once. (or more than once if they were staying in character)
November 15th, 2005 at 12:27 pm
How would a cut off point cost more money than it would bring in? Surely the present situation means they get NO money at all.
Taking a writer or artist PAYE style is obviously not the way, but there has to be some way to justify obtainig revenue from say, someone like Bono.
November 15th, 2005 at 12:51 pm
There’s also the issue of “smoothing” out the earnings of artists over a few years. Many earn well in one year and are poverty stricken in the following years.
November 15th, 2005 at 3:51 pm
Isn’t there a requirement that at least 70% of your earnings must come from your artisit work in order to qualify for the tax exemption?
November 15th, 2005 at 7:43 pm
the exemption is only for original creative work - i.e. U2 qualify on the basis of their writing but not on the basis of concert receipts. You can read more about this on the arts council’s website http://www.artscouncil.ie (sign the petition over there as well!)
November 15th, 2005 at 8:25 pm
Surely performing your songs (”original creative work”) means they should be entitled to receipts for performing said OCW (songs).
November 16th, 2005 at 11:01 am
That girl is right performance is excluded, only U2’s song writing royalties are tax free, concert tickets sales of dvd’s of concerts, investment income etc etc are taxed. While they do get a nice tax break they still pay tax unlike most of our captains of industry who “live outside of the jurisdiction”
The real issue is that average earnings of 50% of beneficiaries in 2001 was €5,213! The problem with capping it is that once the rot starts because of the poor status of artists in Irish society it’s an easy target and they’d chip away at it year by year.