The Revenue Commissioners will not seek additional tax in relation to the 2013 conversion of Kerry co-op to Kerry Group plc shares.

This is separate from the tax bills sent to 400 Kerry Co-op shareholders last year applying income tax to their patronage shares, with up to 3,500 more expected from this year.

As revealed by the Irish Farmers Journal in January, several divisions of the Revenue were exploring “whether the 2013 redemption of co-op shares for plc shares qualified for relief, which could require intervention in over 13,000 taxpayers”. This led to a revision of the internal manual used by Revenue staff to conduct tax audits last November, to exclude part of patronage shares’ value from the tax relief applicable to co-op spin-outs. The Revenue subsequently queried Kerry on the issue. This is “a matter that has been resolved with the relevant parties,” Revenue said.