The Civil Partnership Bill which will pass into law in the near future will bring big changes to the taxation status of cohabitees – both hetrosexual and same sex couples. They will be afforded the same rights and protections as married couples.
From a taxation point of view, what does this mean?
- CAPITAL ACQUISITIONS TAX
The main change is that married couples can transfer assets between them and can inherit each others assets without triggering a tax liability.
For cohabiting couples, they have been treated as strangers in law and would have an exemption limit of €20,740, then taxed at 25% on balance of transfer/inheritance.
- INCOME TAX
Married couples have three options to choose from as regards income tax treatment:
Joint Assessment
Separate Assessment
Separate Treatment
Standard rate 20% thresholds are:
Joint Separate Separate
Assessment Assessment Treatment
Main earner €45,400 €36,400 €36,400
Other earner €27,400 € 36,400 €36,400
If one of the couple is earning over €36,400, they would benefit from the higher standard rate threshold that joint assessment offers.However it would not benefit them if the other earner is earning over €27,400.
With separate assessment , any unused tax credits (except the PAYE tax credit) and standard rate band can be transferred between partners
Separate treatment means that they are taxed as single people and cannot transfer any unused tax credits or standard rate bands between them.
For PRSI, Income Levy and Capital Gains Tax, couples are treated as separate individuals.
There is no guidance from the Revenue at present on how this going to be administered but it is imagined that there will be a form to be completed by the cohabiting couple.