Q&A

Dominic Coyleanswers your questions.

Inheritance from spouse and CGT

My spouse died intestate in 2002. I inherited all the property and got "grant of administration" in 2003. I now intend to sell some of this property which was in my spouse's name only and which was purchased pre-1974. Our marriage was also pre-1974.

In relation to capital gains tax, am I entitled to indexation from 1974 onwards? If this property (agricultural land) has to be assessed for "market value" as of 1974, how do I set about doing it?

M H, Cork

If you had owned the land - even in joint names since 1974 - indexation would certainly have been an issue and you would have been entitled to apply it. However, this is surperceded by the fact that you inherited the land in 2003.

Basically, in terms of capital gains tax, the clock goes back to zero. Any capital gain on the property from the time your partner first acquired it died with them.

From your point of view, you only need to worry about any capital gain on the land since you inherited it. Unfortunately, from your perspective, then finance minister Charlie McCreevy in one of his more retrograde moves ended the practice of indexation for the purposes of capital gains in 2002.

Still, at least you do not have to worry about what the land was worth back in 1974 and calculate any capital gain from that date. You simply need to offset the value of the property - presumably as assessed for capital acquisitions tax (inheritance tax) back in 2002/03.

SSIA sums

Five years ago at the start of my SSIA, my figures from An Post were as follows on the basis of saving the maximum:

Total investment: €15,297

Tax credit: €3,809.25

Interest: €2,100.92

minus tax: €483.21

Net interest: €1,617.71

Total: €20,663.95

Sum paid: €20,630.53.

I make the total €20,723.96. One phone call and two letters to An Post and they have not contacted me. Can you tell me which sum is correct?

Mr D H, Dublin

On the basis of the figures provided, it would appear that you could expect a payout of €20,723.96 as you have worked out.

However, I am not certain that this is so. The maximum monthly contribution was €254, which amounts to a total of €15,240. On the basis of that, the €1 for €4 Government contribution - not a tax credit - would amount to €3,810. While these figures are relatively close to the ones you say An Post quoted you five years ago, they are not precisely the same. As such the interest accrued might also be slightly different.

What is certain is that the exit tax will be 23 per cent of the interest accrued.

Ultimately, there appears to be less than €100 between the figure you calculate based on the numbers An Post gave you five years ago and the sum you have received on maturity of your Special Savings Incentive Account.

It's not a lot but it is still worth getting An Post to justify the figure it has paid you. I would persevere with the company, making sure everything is in writing. If that fails, you should contact the financial services ombudsman.

Providence

Last week in a reply to a reader looking for information on the fate of various exploration companies in which he held stock, I stated that Computershare was the registrar for Providence Resources, a company spun out of Arcon back in the 1990s.

In fact, Providence's share registrar is Capita Corporate Registrars.

Shareholders looking to contact the registrars in relation to holdings in Providence can do so at: Capita Registrars, PO Box 7117, Dublin 2 or at Unit 5, Manor Street Business Park, Manor Street, Dublin 7.

• Please send your queries to Dominic Coyle, Q&A, The Irish Times, 24-28 Tara Street, Dublin 2, or e-mail to dcoyle@irish-times.ie. This column is a reader service and is not intended to replace professional advice. Due to the volume of mail, there may be a delay in answering queries. All suitable queries will be answered through the columns of the newspaper. No personal correspondence will be entered into.