The news media have been gushing in praise of JP McManus for giving €1 million to every GAA board.
The money came from the JP McManus Charitable Foundation which is exempt from income tax, corporation tax, capital gains tax and deposit interest retention tax.
JP McManus himself is a tax exile, claiming an official residence in Switzerland. Yet he owns a mansion in Martinstown, Killmallock that is about 20 times the size of a normal three-bedroomed house.
Under Irish tax law, someone who lives in Irelands for fewer than 183 days can claim to be a tax exile and, as JP owns a private Gulfstream CG650 jet, it is difficult to estimate exactly how many days he spends anywhere.
In 2016, the Revenue Commissioners reported that JP McManus had not paid taxes in Ireland for twenty years. Yet he was a billionaire who made a fortune from currency speculation.
Everyone would like to fund their favourite pastime – rather than paying taxes. But the ‘little people’ cannot indulge this wish.
So maybe JP McManus should be told – Just pay taxes like the rest of us.
