Tax, hobby v small farmer

If you're running a successful business you should talk to an accountant and take their advice. You'll save money in the long run.

I know a few lads that started off in business and it was only after a few years of hard slogging they decided to pay an accountant to remove some stress. They're all driving new vans on accountants advice. You might be surprised how helpful they can be to help your business grow.

Ill give you one bit of advice and hopefully you will take it on board. If you don't know you can write off farm van/jeep and fuel expenses to the farm the best thing for you to do is find an accountant that does. I've 40ac, PAYE worker so very similar to yourself bar maybe a few more acres but I'd still class it as only a hobby, in my honest opinion my accountant for the farm is 500e a year give or take. It's the best money I spend every year as he claws back a lot that otherwise id not get, or worse still give to the tax man.......

I agree speak to your accountant. download your bank transactions for the year and see what you can put against the farm. IF you use your personal car for the farm ( check cattle, marts , ag shows, moving cattle etc.) claim some %relief from this on insurance, tax, Diesel, repairs. % on broadband and phone too ( farm expense) Anything is better than giving it to the tax man. you would be surprised how it all adds up. I am working full time and part time farming with similar acres.

Can never understand this thing of lads buying stuff with cash. Especially up north. Heard of a couple of lads local who bought trailers up the north. Working full time and off farm . Paid Cash no vat. Great deal they thought.
Using money that the tax has already been paid out of to buy farm equipment makes no sense to me.

There's no right or wrong answer. You could have good or bad in either. Find someone with a good reputation/feedback etc from people you trust.

HTF have you 25 bank accounts. I have gone into a partnership and have 3 and it's one too much IMO.

If you buy off DD just screen shot the add and record it.. if you cannot get a receipt or pay by cheque/ bank transfer you are an idiot.

I'm going for 25 bank accounts myself. The anti-Bertie

Is it lack of enthusiasm because it's something new and different to him or are there genuine reasons against it? It's probably an obvious thing if there's a large profit/cash surplus each year but each case is different in fairness.

Lads always seem to want to spend the money when there is profit to reduce the tax.This buying new vans when not needed just cause it’s “ better than giving it to the tax man “ If you’re just going to spend the profit on stuff you don’t need ,why bother making a profit?Id rather keep the profit than spend it and max the pension out.

Out of interest, what sort of tax bills do lads have in relation to their farming income when they work full time in a PAYE job? Its a bit of a sickener that every € profit earned for the farm is taxed at c50%. Ive no real capital expenditure myself so not a huge pile to offset against dept of ag receipts / cattle sales and with a few grand profit each year in the farm id end up with a near 1k tax bill

If you have a child over 14 years of age you can put him or her on the books. Open an account in there name and put the wages into that account. It can be usedas a college fund.

Heard a story where the child used takevthe money out in cash and the mother used to buy the messages with it

Yea, quite common now. Just ensure that you are transferring the pay regularly and into an account with the child's name on it (it's ok if it's a joint account with your name and the child's name on it). Watch the restricted hours allowed for their age and increase then for the school holidays. Not a thing revenue can do about it then.

so you have to pay prise and usc on it

Yea. It'll be very little though when it's a child.

would family members not come under take class M. So no prsi at either employee or employer (an no prsi benefits either).

agreed. But tax class M means no prsi.

Spending money changing 3 year old 4x4s for new just to avoid tax is pure ignorance.

When farming with a day job (assuming day job pays 50k or more)

First thing is: Claim everything you possibly can that you buy anyway, and make sure to draw out significant cash - not €100 a time, - stop tapping, so that your creative accountant can be his creative self. Sheepdogs, Hay, bits off Dungdeal... Enough said. Buy your home heating oil with cash you drew out.

Second thing is: Have everything/machine you need to make farming easier/safer/less disruptive to family life, - but within reason. They dont have to be new, just receipted and of significant use case.

Third thing is Max out the pension contributions.

Fourth thing is pay any child over 14 as much as possible.

Fifth thing: If partner doesn't work out for wages then make them an employee - it'll do two things, 1-dissappear some profit, and 2 - raise your high tax band.

After all this is done: Pay up and look merry - the government need money to piss up against the wall too...