Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this episode, I’m revisiting Research & Development (R&D) Tax Relief for Limited Companies in Ireland, because there’s been a very welcome change - the credit has increased from 25% to 30%. Not a nuisance at all when you think about it!

I walk through the key conditions companies need to meet to claim the R&D tax credit, including where the R&D must take place, the types of activities that qualify, and the deadline for submitting a claim. I also explain how the refund mechanism works over the three-year period, which is particularly helpful for companies that may be loss-making and looking for cash flow support.

We also look at what types of costs qualify, including salaries, overheads, plant and machinery, and even buildings used for R&D — along with the important conditions and potential clawbacks to watch out for. Finally, I cover the rules around surrendering the R&D tax credit to key employees, including the eligibility conditions and the minimum effective tax rate requirement.

What you'll hear in this Episode:

1. Overview of the 30% R&D Tax Credit: The increase in the Research & Development tax credit from 25% to 30% and why this change is a positive development for qualifying limited companies in Ireland.
2. Eligibility Conditions for Claiming R&D Relief: The key requirements companies must meet to claim the relief, including being within the charge to Irish corporation tax and carrying out qualifying R&D activities in Ireland, the EU, EEA, or the UK.
3. How the R&D Tax Credit Is Refunded or Offset: The simplified repayment mechanism, explaining how companies can offset the credit against corporation tax or receive it in refundable instalments over a three-year period.
4. Qualifying R&D Expenditure and Assets: The types of costs that qualify for the credit, including salaries, overheads, plant and machinery, and certain buildings used for R&D activities.
5. Surrendering the R&D Tax Credit to Key Employees: How companies can pass part of the tax credit to key employees working in R&D and the strict conditions that must be met, including time spent on R&D and maintaining a minimum effective tax rate of 23%.

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Mentioned in this episode:

Get your Audio Revision for the 2026 ACCA Exams

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this episode of Study for Tax in Your Coffee Break, I’m going through the December 2025 ACCA Irish Advanced Tax Examiner’s Report — and honestly, it’s gold dust. The examiner has given us a clear window into what went well, what didn’t, and where valuable marks were left behind. Whether you’re preparing for your first sitting or reflecting on a recent attempt, this report is packed with insight that you simply cannot afford to ignore.

We walk through all three questions on the paper, including the 50-mark Question 1 with its mix of ethics, financial distress, share disposals and PRSA contributions. I highlight where students slipped up — from VAT on property (you know he loves it!) to gift splitting rules and, most importantly, failing to read the requirements properly. We also unpack Question 2’s specified intangible assets and permanent establishment issues, and Question 3’s termination payments, FED relief and close company transactions with a strong focus on the examiner’s repeated message: "know your conditions and know how to apply them!"

A major theme throughout this paper was professional marks — commercial acumen, skepticism, and real-world thinking. The examiner has clearly raised the bar here, and I share practical advice on how you can prepare for that. If you’re serious about passing this exam, this episode will help you understand exactly what the marking team is looking for — and how to avoid a “bloodbath” in the next sitting.

Resources mentioned in this Episode:

1. December 2025 ACCA Irish Advanced Tax Examiner’s Report
2. ACCA ATX Examiner's Reports Portal
3. "Ep040 Ethics"

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this episode, we're talking through a brand new CGT relief introduced by the Finance Act 2024: the Relief for Investment in Innovative Enterprises, more commonly known as Angel Investor Relief. It’s an interesting and welcome relief that’s designed to help innovative Irish startups access early-stage funding while rewarding investors with a reduced CGT rate.

There's a number of qualifications, conditions and interactions of this relief with others that may preclude certain other available reliefs, so make sure to listen carefully in the case that it becomes an examinable relief!

Main Topics Discussed in this Episode:

1. Overview of Angel Investor Relief: What it is, why it was introduced, and how it reduces CGT for qualifying investors.
2. Who Can Qualify as an Investor: The key conditions an individual investor must meet, including shareholding limits, minimum holding periods, and connection rules.
3. What Makes a Company “Qualifying”: The importance of the certificate of qualification, what Revenue looks for, and why commercial innovation and going-concern status matter.
4. Eligible Shares and Investment Conditions: What counts as eligible shares, why cash investment is required, and why buying existing shares won’t qualify for the relief.
5. Interaction with Other Tax Reliefs: How Angel Investor Relief interacts with EIIS, Entrepreneur Relief, and Retirement Relief, highlighting why choosing the right relief can make a significant tax difference.

*****

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this very special (and slightly self-indulgent!) episode of Study for Tax in Your Coffee Break, I’m delighted to catch up with one of my favourite ex-students of all time, John Lyons: now officially Mr ACCA. After a semester without his questions, comments and general banter, I couldn’t resist inviting him back for a chat… and I’m so glad I did.

John shares his brilliant (and very real) story of taking the long road to qualification. Starting with Accounting Technician exams, stepping up to ACCA, navigating setbacks, life “hiccups”, and still coming back stronger every time.

We talk honestly about what it’s like to study later in life when work, family, and responsibilities are all competing for your attention, and why comparison is a trap. John’s mindset of “running your own race” is one I think every student needs to hear.

We also dig into why Irish tax is such a valuable subject in the real world (even if some of the syllabus bits make you roll your eyes!), how employers view it, and why effort from week one matters more than most people want to admit.

Main Topics Discussed in this Episode:

1. John’s non-traditional journey into accounting, moving from electrician to ACCA through the Accounting Technician route after a career-changing injury.
2. The realities of studying for professional exams later in life, including balancing work, family responsibilities, and maintaining focus and motivation.
3. Why persistence matters more than natural ability, with honest reflections on failing exams, building resilience, and “running your own race.”
4. The practical value of Irish tax in everyday life and why it remains one of the most employable and relevant specialisms for accountants.
5. The importance of consistent effort, student engagement, and using available supports from the very start of the course to give yourself the best chance of passing.

Get in touch with John Lyons:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-lyons-acca-cat-3bb54474/

AB Magazine's "The View with John Lyons" article

*****

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

I've talked about Residency generally in an episode before, but this time we're talking specifically about Residency Reliefs that appear time and time again in the ACCA Advanced Tax exam. Residency questions are a favourite of the examiner, and knowing your conditions off by heart is the key to securing marks.

Join me as we walk through SARP, split-year relief, cross-border relief and FED, unpacking the logic behind each one, the traps students fall into, and the clues the examiner leaves in the case study to steer you toward the right relief.

If you’re preparing for December’s exam, this is your quick, clear refresher on the core rules, conditions, and calculations you need at your fingertips.

*****

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this week’s episode, I’m having a proper look through the June 2025 Examiner’s Report for the Advanced Tax exam. I know it might sound a bit dry, but honestly, I love these — they tell you exactly what the examiner was thinking, what went well, and where people fell down. It’s a bit like getting a peek behind the curtain before your own sitting.

We go question by question, talking through the examiner’s main points, from ethics and reconstructions to capital taxes, CAT reliefs, residency and consortiums. I’ll flag the areas that caught people out, like missing recommendations, not knowing all the conditions for reliefs or forgetting to show commercial sense. There are some handy little reminders too, about using your skepticism mark and spotting when something doesn’t quite add up.

If you want to know what separates a pass from a strong result, this one’s worth your coffee break.

Resources Mentioned in the Episode

• ACCA ATX IRL Examiner's Report for June 2025
• ACCA ATX Examiner's Reports Portal
• "Ep040 Ethics"

*************

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

In this episode, I’m tackling one of the examiner’s favourite topics: Pensions. While you won’t see them coming up as a full 20-mark question, they appear often enough and can carry a sizeable number of marks. That means they’re well worth your time to understand.

I walk you through the examinable areas around both pension investment and withdrawal, explaining the tax treatment, the limits you need to remember, and the pitfalls to watch for in exam questions.

Main Topics Discussed:

• The difference between personal pensions and occupational pensions – and why it matters in exam questions.
• How tax relief works on personal contributions, including the age-related percentage table and the €115,000 cap.
• Why employer contributions to occupational pensions are so tax efficient – and how this could influence the incorporation decision for high earners.
• What happens on pension withdrawal: lump sums, ARFs, and annuities, plus how they’re taxed.
• How to spot the pension type you’re being asked about and where to find the key tables in your tax tables booklet.

If you’re preparing for ATX, pensions are a topic you really can’t afford to ignore. I’ll help you cut through the detail so you can answer with confidence on exam day.

Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

To improve your study for the ACCA ATX Exams this year, head to Paula Byrne's website to purchase the ACCA ATX IRL Revision Book for Exams in 2025 and Tax Conditions - the Spoken Word for audio-based revision.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.

Thank you to Amicus: Search and Recruitment for Sponsoring this episode. To find your next Finance or Accounting Role, head to https://amicus.ie/ and tell them that we sent you!

This is a replay of a previous episode in the feed. We will be back to normal broadcast next in September 2025.

In this episode, Paula talks about the different tax considerations related to Share Buybacks for companies, and the reliefs available when a company deftly manages whether CGT or Income Tax is required in each scenario.

Topics Covered:

Overview of Share Buyback

• General explanation of share buyback.
• Context in exams - a case study where a company buys back shares.

Income Tax vs. Capital Gains Tax (CGT) Treatment

• Default treatment as an income tax event under schedule F.
• Preferable treatment as a CGT event and why (lower tax rate at 33%, CGT reliefs).

Conditions for CGT Treatment

• The company must be a trading company or a holding company of a subsidiary.
• Shares must be in an unquoted company.
• Shares must have been held for five years by an Irish resident individual.
• Redemption must be for the benefit of trade.
• Substantial reduction in the shareholder's interest (25% reduction, shares 30% or less post-redemption).

Examiner's Indicators

• Recognizing share buyback questions in exam cases (e.g., shareholders not getting along, detrimental to the company).

Tax Reliefs for Qualifying Shareholders

• Entrepreneurial relief and retirement relief.
• Potential to pay no tax on share buyback.

Treatment for Non-Qualifying Shareholders

• Taxed under schedule F.
• Tax calculation: agreed buyback price minus nominal value of shares.
• Rate of tax at marginal rate.
• Withholding tax at 25% by the company.

Special Considerations

• Distinction from close company transactions.
• Capital loss for those taxed under income tax.

Company's Perspective on Share Buyback

• Potential stamp duty liability.
• No stamp duty if shares are converted to redeemable preference shares first.

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Thank you for listening to Study For Tax in your Coffee Break! If you enjoyed the episode, make sure to leave a rating and review on your Podcast platform and share it with others to let them know you enjoyed the podcast.

If you'd like to purchase the books from which the content of this podcast is made, head to https://paulabyrne.ie/tax-books/.

Thank you to Matthew Bliss for editing and production of this episode. If you'd like him to edit your podcast, send an email to business@mbpod.com or head to https://www.mbpod.com/.