There is no requirement for a solicitor or an auctioneer to be engaged to assist with the completion of or witness the lease agreements. However, any individual is free to engage a solicitor/advisor/tax consultant, to assist with the preparation of the lease.

The lease requires the signature of both farmers (lessor and lessee) involved and the signature of an independent witness.

No. The Master Lease is a comprehensive template document that provides many options for the individuals involved. Where a section of the lease is deemed to be not necessary by the two parties involved, it can simply be crossed out.

To qualify for the long-term income exemption scheme, the Revenue Commissioners have advised that a lease must contain the following:

A qualifying lease must be in writing or evidenced in writing, which

• contains the names and addresses of the lessor(s) and lessee(s),
• specifies the acreage, address, location etc. of the land which is the subject of the lease,
• sets out the terms of the lease, and
• is signed by the lessor(s).

The lease must be for a definite term of five years or more. The term of the lease should be expressly set out in the lease (or written memorandum).

Yes. Farmers, who have entered into land leasing agreements since 3^rd April 2012 are now required to register the lease with the PSRA.

Registration of the lease is a legal requirement set out in Part 12 of the Property Services Regulation Act 2011 (Residential Property Sales Prices and Commercial Leases Database), whereby the PSRA is required to develop and maintain a Commercial Lease Register and tenants of a commercial lease (including land leases) are required to provide the PSRA with specific information on the commercial lease.

The tenant (or a third party authorised by the tenant) is required to provide the following information to the PSRA in respect of the lease agreement.

• The commencement date of the lease;
• The rent (if any) being paid for the lease;
• The frequency at which the rent will be reviewed for the land (if there is a rent review during the lease term);
• Particulars relating to who is liable (tenant/landlord) in respect of rates, insurance, service charges and repairs to the property;
• Particulars relating to any break-clause in the lease.

This information must be registered with the PSRA thirty days after commencement of the lease (i.e. within 30 days of receipt by the tenant of the stamp certificate from the Revenue Commissioners).

There is no fee for registering the information, which can be done online.

While the obligation is on the tenant (farmer) to register the lease, this can be done by a third party on behalf of the tenant, at the tenant’s request (e.g. solicitor, auctioneer, other party).

Yes. Land lease agreements which comprise a written document are liable for Stamp Duty. It is payable by the lessee (person leasing the land) at a rate of 1% of the annual rent payable under the lease. For example, if the annual rent payable on leased land is €10,000, Stamp Duty of €100 is liable.

The full amount of stamp duty due must be paid within 30 days of the date of execution of the instrument.  In practice Revenue allow a further period of 14 days in which to file an e-stamping return and pay the duty. Failure to file and pay within 44 days will result in late filing and interest charges.

In Budget 2015, it was announced that there would be an exemption from stamp duty for leases of 6 years or more, from 1^stJanuary. However, this measure is still awaiting EU State Aid approval, and so the requirement to pay 1% stamp duty remains but is likely to be removed in early 2018.

The lease itself must not be registered with/ submitted to the Revenue Commissioners. Instead, Form SDR3 must be filled out and submitted.

This form can be sourced from the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, National Stamp Duty Office,

Dublin Castle, Dublin 2 (LoCall 1890 482 582).

Alternatively, the form can be returned online. By filing the return electronically through the Revenue On-Line-Service (ROS), allows the return to be filed, the Stamp Duty due to be calculated and a Stamp Duty Certificate to be obtained, all in the same on-line transaction.

If you are leasing BPS entitlements with your land, you must notify the Department of Agriculture of this, to ensure that the entitlements remain in your name and revert to you at the end of the lease period. This is a straightforward process, and the form that must be filled out is available here.