Neil Arlidge wrote: > This is the way Green diesel for boats has gone in the ROI....surely the UK > will follow. > I have already looked into the implications...it looks like the best place > to boat diesel wise is on the ROI / NI borders ;-) > > ************************************************************ > In the Finance Bill 2008 published today the Minister has unveiled the new > rules that will apply to the use of "Green" diesel for private pleasure > navigation in RoI. > > The Press release is at http://www.finance.gov.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=5162 and > there are links to the bill and the explanatory memorandum at the bottom of > the page. > > >From 1 Novemeber the rate of duty will be 368.05 Euro per 1000 litres - the > same as road diesel. Thats in Section 65 on page 91. > > Section 66 on then goes on to explain how the tax-man will collect the extra > revenue: > ===================begins============== > Subsection (a) iii defines "private pleasure craft" as follows: > '''private pleasure navigation' means navigation in any craft, by its owner > or the natural or legal person who enjoys its use either through hire or > through any other means, for other than commercial purposes, and in > particular other than for the carriage of passengers or goods, the supply of > services for consideration or for the purposes of public authorities;'', > > Subsection (c) then says: > > (c) by inserting the following after section 97- > > 97A.-(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), heavy oil which has been taxed > at the rate specified in Schedule 30 2 for other heavy oil (referred to in > this section as ''marked gas oil'') may be used for private pleasure > navigation. > > (2) Where subsection (1) applies, the owner of the craft used for private > pleasure navigation shall, not later than the first day of March following > the calendar year in which the marked gas oil was purchased for such use, > deliver to an officer- > > (a) a return, in such form as the Commissioners may require, of the quantity > in litres of marked gas oil purchased in that calendar year, and > > (b) payment of an amount of mineral oil tax calculated at the rate of 32.069 > cent per litre (which is the difference between the mineral oil tax rate for > marked gas oil > and the rate for heavy oil used for private pleasure navigation) on such > quantity > > (3) The owner referred to in subsection (2) shall, together with vouched > receipts for all purchases of the marked gas oil concerned, maintain a > record of such purchases, in such form as the Commissioners may require. > ==========ends================ > The somewhat confusing wording arises because what the 2008 Bill does is > amend an earlier Act. > > My reading (and I'm only a simple engineer, not a parliamentary draughtsman > or a lawyer) is that from 1 November of this year we will be required to > keep a record of any "Green" diesel we buy for our boats along with the > receipts and then between 1-January and 31-March each year make a return to > the revenue saying how much we bought and enclosing a cheque for the extra > duty payable. > > Two things aren't clear to me: > > 1) What happens if I buy "Red" diesel in Northern Ireland > > and > > 2) How hirers of hire-boats will cope (because my reading is that the hirers > will be liable for the extra duty.) > > These are questions that we will pose to the Powers That Be in the Dept. of > Finance. > > Colin Becker > Project/Development Officer, IWAI > "IWAI - The Voice of the Waterways" > **************************************************** > Wow! What a mind-bogglingly bureaucratic way of doing it.
Someone who only uses a few hundred litres a year will have to collect all those receipts, bundle them up and send them off with a cheque for a few 10s of Euros. It's going to cost more to handle it at the other end than the revenue they'll collect.
