Startup Refunds for Entrepreneurs (SURE) is a tax relief incentive scheme.
If you are interested in starting your own company, you may be entitled to an income tax refund of up to 41% of the capital that you invest under SURE. Depending on the size of your investment you may be entitled to a refund of income tax paid over the 6 years prior to year in which you invest.
The following is a basic example of how refunds under SURE are calculated.
John makes a SURE investment of €100,000 in 2015.
The €100,000 investment made by John can be used to reduce his taxable income in one or more of the previous six tax years.
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings | 80,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 | 75,000 | 60,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 |
| Tax Paid | 21,496 | 21,496 | 29,532 | 20,562 | 14,412 | 2,700 | 2,700 |
John opts to utilise his SURE investment of €100,000 in 2011. This reduces John’s taxable income and tax payable for 2011 to Nil and results in a SURE refund of €29,532 calculated as follows:
- 2011 Earnings: €100,000
- SURE Investment: €100,000
- Taxable Income: €Nil
As John paid tax of €29,532 in the 2011 tax year, and has previously not received a full or partial refund of tax paid in the 2011 tax year, he will receive a SURE refund of the full amount of the tax he paid in the 2011 tax year of €29,532.
