Irish Revenues Outstrip Targets In 2015

Ireland collected EUR3.3bn (USD3.6bn) more in tax revenue in 2015 than forecast, helping to reduce the fiscal deficit by EUR5.2bn, the latest Exchequer Returns show.

EUR45.6bn in tax revenue was collected in 2015, up 10.5 percent on 2014. Revenue collections were 7.8 percent ahead of target, and corporation tax accounted for 70 percent of the surplus. The underlying deficit fell from EUR8.6bn in 2014 to approximately EUR3.4bn in 2015.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan welcomed the figures. He said: “Overall, an Exchequer deficit of EUR62m was recorded at end-December 2015. This is a massive improvement from a deficit of EUR8.1bn for 2014, which was buoyed by a return from some of our investments in the banking sector. When once-off factors are accounted for, we have an underlying Exchequer deficit in 2015 of around EUR3.4bn, compared to an underlying deficit of about EUR8.6bn in 2014.”