Your Business: Taxing times 10

When it comes to smart management of company taxes, straight-talking advice trumps all else. Dermot Byrne, taxation expert and former director of the Irish Tax Institute, offers his ten-point checklist for Irish SME owners

1. Property

If a property is nearly paid for, or actually paid for, leave it outside the trading company as it can be sold directly by the owner with the proceeds in their pocket instead of in their company.

If a property has major borrowing, then it may be best to let the company own it, and it will only pay tax at 12.5 per cent so that it has 87.5 per cent ...