Clients

How we help our private clients

Recent Projects

Set out below are examples of the types of private clients we deal with and their ‘drivers’ or concerns. You will see that the focus is on individuals and their families. This is because, even where business advice is also needed, our main driver is the needs of individuals and their families. No matter how significant the business/farm enterprise, they exist to serve their owners.

After all; growing, managing, protecting and passing on assets is what it’s all about.

Jane is a 35-year old solicitor moving to Dublin from Manchester. She is married and her husband will remain in UK. Jane is UK domiciled and will likely become Irish tax resident, though she may also retain UK tax residency. Jane’s parents have signalled that they wish to gift UK property to her. Jane wants to know the impact of the move on her tax residency and domicile; she is also wondering if any Irish tax issues could arise on the gift of UK property.

Declan is a 52-year old Irish entrepreneur in the fintech industry, looking at an exit within a three to 5-year timeframe. He is unmarried with a long-term partner, and children aged 12 and 15 years old. Declan wants tax efficiency on exit and advice in relation to inheritances by his children in the ‘worse-case scenario’ of both parents’ sudden death. This is of particular concern to him as his father died of heart disease at the age of 49.

As an investor with property in Ireland, the UK and Hungary, along with investments in various share portfolios and funds, Brian wants to ensure that his tax returns and liabilities are fully paid up-to-date in all jurisdictions where he has obligations. He needs an adviser to prepare Irish returns and to liaise with foreign tax advisers to co-ordinate preparation and payment for all tax returns.

Dolores and Pat are the 68-year old parents of 4 adult children, who have 10 grandchildren. They are concerned about the protection and division of family assets, which include a thriving third-generation business in which two of the children work, a farm in which none of the children have shown any interest, various business and personal properties, shares and cash.

Recent Projects

Tax credit for research
& development spend.

Goal:Secure 25% corporation tax credit for research and development spend by a food production client.

Project: We worked with the client’s technical staff to identify ‘qualifying spend’ on an attempt to resolve a scientific/technological uncertainty as to how smoked flavouring could be added to certain meat products. Once the qualifying activities were identified, we collated the financial information across the various expense categories, and prepared an R&D report to be used in the event of a future Revenue audit of the tax credit.

Find out more on advice for expanding businesses

Staggered gifts and inheritances to the family

Goal: : Pass assets to children in a staggered manner to achieve two goals; to maintain the financial independence of the parents until the end of their lives, and to minimise the possibility that assets would be wasted by inexperienced children.

Project: We reviewed the full circumstances of the clients’ personal and business assets, as well as the current and potential financial position of each of their 6 children. By relying on relevant capital gains tax and gift tax reliefs/thresholds, we advised on how to minimise taxes on gifts of assets during the parents’ lifetimes and inheritances due to the children under the terms of the wills. We ensured that the proposed lifetime gifts were correctly made, that all of the relevant tax returns were filed with Revenue and that the parents’ intentions in relation to inheritances were correctly reflected in the parents’ wills.

Find out more on estate planning

Giving a key employee an ownership share in the business

Goal: Give shares to a ‘key employee’ in a way that minimised taxes on the transaction and also gave the founders peace of mind that the shares could not be transferred to an unfriendly third-party.

Project: We advised on the creation of a group structure, including holding company and subsidiaries, as well as the reclassification of the companies’ shares. Working with the client’s lawyer and company secretary, we ensured that all of the relevant documentation to effect this was prepared and filed with the CRO. We advised on the relevant payroll taxes and how these should be reported to Revenue. We also worked with the client’s lawyer to put an appropriate shareholder agreement in place, in order to protect the position of both the ‘key employee’ and the founders of the business.

Tax-driven business financing

Goal: Generate third-party investment for the build and operation of a wind turbine.

Project: We advised on the creation of an Employment Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS) that provides income tax relief for investors who commit to retaining their EIIS company shares for at least 4 years. We assisted the client, their lawyer and company secretary in preparing the relevant investment prospectus and all relevant CRO paperwork. The relevant Revenue submissions were also prepared and filed by us.

Find out more on advice for expanding businesses

Trading in a post-Brexit world

Goal:Assist in a change of market focus caused by the UK leaving the EU.

Project: Our client is an Irish manufacturing company that specialises in developing and producing components for the car industry, with primary markets in UK and Germany. Faced with a new customs regime for UK exports, we advised on the new framework for exporting from Ireland to the UK, and liaised with the client’s hauliers and in-house finance team to make the necessary changes from an Irish VAT and customs perspective. We also advised on the potential Irish tax and social security implications arising for an Irish employee if they were to be posted to Germany, to develop the German market further. Liaising with German tax advisers, we also flagged the potential German tax implications if a German branch/establishment were created by the Irish employee.