10.9 billion euros in corporate tax collected last year

Revenue collected 10.9 billion euros in corporation tax last year, according to analysis published alongside its annual report.

Corporation tax is now the third source of tax, accounting for 19% of net tax revenue.

The top ten companies account for 40% of all corporate tax, while the top 100 companies account for 70%.

77% of companies subject to corporation tax are foreign multinationals. 7% are Irish multinationals while 16% are Irish national companies.

In 2018, the most recent year for which this information is available, a total of €182.7 billion in taxable profits was recorded by these companies.

90% of businesses were concentrated in five sectors: manufacturing, finance and insurance, administrative and support services, information and communications, and wholesale and retail trade.

According to Revenue’s analysis, foreign multinationals account for 27% of employment and 44% of employment taxes. This indicates the higher level of salaries offered in many multinational companies.

However, the research also reveals that two recently introduced corporate tax breaks are not widely used.

The research and development tax credit was used by 1,303 companies in 2018, 202 less than the previous year. The cost to the public treasury of credit also fell, from 152 million euros in 2017 to 109 million euros in 2018.

There were less than ten complaints in 2018 under the “knowledge development box”. This was introduced in 2015 to encourage companies to develop new intellectual properties.

It attracted a reduced corporation tax of 6.25% on profits made from any new product or service.

The number of companies requesting it was only 12 in 2016 and 13 in 2017. It cost the Treasury 9 million euros in 2018.