Filing an IT38 on ROS: A Full Worked Example for a €450,000 Inheritance from a Parent
If you inherit €450,000 from a parent, you owe €16,500 in Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) and you must file an IT38 return — because €450,000 is more than 80% of the €400,000 Group A threshold. This guide walks you through the exact calculation and how to file the IT38 on ROS, line by line, with a real worked example.
An inheritance from a parent feels like the last thing you should have to do paperwork for. But Ireland's CAT system is self-assessed: Revenue does not send you a bill. The obligation to file an IT38 and pay sits entirely on you, the beneficiary, and the deadline is fixed — miss it and a surcharge is added automatically. The good news is that once you understand the three moving parts (the aggregation rule, the valuation date, and the ROS return itself), the whole thing is straightforward. Let me show you exactly how, using a single inheritance worked all the way through.
Step 1 — Work out whether you even have to file
Most people assume the threshold (€400,000 for a child inheriting from a parent) is the point at which you start paying tax. That is true. But the point at which you must file a return comes earlier — at 80% of the threshold.
You must file an IT38 return once the total taxable value of the gifts and inheritances you have taken in a given group, since 5 December 1991, exceeds 80% of the relevant group threshold. For Group A (€400,000), that filing trigger is €320,000. This is true even if no tax is actually payable yet. Source: Revenue.ie — CAT thresholds, rates and aggregation rules.
"Aggregation" is the word that trips people up. CAT does not look at this one inheritance in isolation. It adds together everything you have ever received within the same group threshold band since 5 December 1991. So if a parent had given you €60,000 a decade ago and now leaves you €450,000, both count toward the Group A total. We will keep this example clean — Ruth, below, has received nothing previously — but always check your own history first.
Step 2 — Identify the threshold group and the rate
The threshold that applies depends on your relationship to the disponer (the person who died or made the gift). A child inheriting from a parent is the textbook Group A case.
| Group | Relationship to disponer | Threshold (from 2 Oct 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Group A | Child (incl. certain step/adopted/foster children), minor child of a deceased child | €400,000 |
| Group B | Parent, grandparent, sibling, niece/nephew, lineal ancestor/descendant | €40,000 |
| Group C | Any other relationship (e.g. cousin, friend, partner not married/in a civil partnership) | €20,000 |
The CAT rate on the taxable excess above your threshold is a flat 33%. Thresholds and the rate are confirmed at Revenue.ie — CAT group thresholds and Citizens Information — Capital Acquisitions Tax.
Step 3 — The full worked calculation
Ruth, age 41, inherits her late mother's house and savings, valued at €450,000. Ruth has never received any prior gift or inheritance that uses the Group A threshold. Her mother (the disponer) died in March 2026, probate completed, and the assets passed to Ruth without conditions — an absolute interest.
- Taxable value of the inheritance: €450,000
- Less Group A threshold: −€400,000
- Taxable excess: €50,000
- CAT due at 33%: €50,000 × 33% = €16,500
Ruth must both file an IT38 (she is well over the €320,000 filing trigger) and pay €16,500. Because she is not claiming any relief and took the benefit as an absolute interest from a single disponer, she could in principle use the short IT38S — but as she is paying tax through ROS anyway, the full IT38 on ROS is the cleaner route.
A quick sanity check most people skip: the threshold is applied to taxable value, not gross value. If Ruth had to pay, say, €5,000 in allowable funeral or estate costs that reduced what she actually received, those can reduce the taxable value before the threshold is applied. Keep that distinction in mind — but in our clean example, taxable value equals the €450,000.
Step 4 — Pin down the valuation date (it sets your deadline)
The single most important date in CAT is the valuation date — the date on which the market value of the inherited property is established. For an inheritance it is usually the date the person entitled (or their personal representative) becomes entitled to retain the assets for their own benefit — broadly, when the assets are available to be transferred, which for most estates is around the grant of probate. It is not automatically the date of death.
Why it matters: the valuation date drives your pay-and-file deadline.
| Valuation date falls between… | Pay-and-file deadline (paper IT38S) |
|---|---|
| 1 January and 31 August | 31 October of the same year |
| 1 September and 31 December | 31 October of the following year |
Probate on Ruth's mother's estate completed and Ruth became entitled to the assets in June 2026. Her valuation date therefore falls between 1 January and 31 August 2026, so her pay-and-file deadline is 31 October 2026. Because Ruth files and pays through ROS (not paper), she gets the slightly later ROS extended deadline in mid-November — in 2025 that extension ran to 19 November, and Revenue publishes the exact ROS date each year. Both the return and the payment must go through ROS to qualify for the extension. Source: Revenue.ie — Important dates for CAT.
Step 5 — ROS or myAccount? And registering for CAT
You can file the IT38 through either myAccount (the portal for PAYE/individual taxpayers) or ROS (Revenue Online Service, used by the self-employed, agents and businesses). Both submit the same return. Which you choose comes down to which login you already hold:
- myAccount — easiest if you are a regular PAYE employee with no ROS profile. Register at myAccount, then file the CAT IT38 from within it.
- ROS — the route if you (or your solicitor/tax adviser acting as agent) already file other returns. An agent must use ROS to file on your behalf.
Before you can submit, you need to be registered for CAT. In practice the system links the IT38 to your PPSN — there is no separate "CAT tax-head" registration the way there is for VAT or PAYE-Employer. You start a new IT38 in the gifts/inheritance section, identify yourself as the beneficiary, identify the disponer by name and PPSN, and the return opens. The official filing guidance is at Revenue.ie — How and when do you pay and file?
Should Ruth use the short IT38S or the full IT38?
The short form (IT38S, available on paper) is only allowed in narrow circumstances. You can use it only if all of the following are true: you are claiming no relief, exemption or credit except the small gift exemption (€3,000 per donor per year); the benefit is an absolute interest with no conditions or restrictions; and the property came from a single disponer and is not part of a larger benefit or series of benefits taken on the same day. If any of those fail — you are claiming agricultural relief, business relief, dwelling-house exemption, or there are multiple disponers — you must file the full IT38 electronically. (Source: Revenue.ie — Form IT38S.) Ruth qualifies for the short form, but since she is paying tax she files the full IT38 on ROS.
Step 6 — Fill in the IT38 and pay
Once the return is open, you work through the panels: your details, the disponer's details (name, address, PPSN, relationship), the benefit (description, valuation date, taxable value), prior aggregable benefits, and any reliefs. ROS calculates the tax for you — for Ruth it returns €16,500 — and then offers payment by single debit (ROS Debit Instruction) or card. File and pay in the same session: an unpaid filed return still accrues interest.
Common reasons an IT38 is rejected or queried
In my practice, the same handful of errors send returns back. Avoid these and your IT38 sails through:
| Problem | What goes wrong | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong PPSN of the disponer | The return can't be matched to the estate; ROS errors or Revenue queries it later | Confirm the deceased's PPSN from the grant of probate / Revenue correspondence before you start |
| Missing or wrong valuation date | You can't compute the deadline, and the return is incomplete — a mandatory field | Establish the valuation date (usually around grant of probate) and enter it exactly |
| Forgetting prior benefits | Under-declaring aggregable gifts/inheritances understates the tax | List every Group A benefit taken since 5 Dec 1991 |
| Filing late | Automatic surcharge: 5% if under 2 months late (max €12,695), 10% if over (max €63,485), plus interest at ~8% p.a. | Diarise the 31 Oct / mid-Nov ROS deadline the moment you know the valuation date |
Late-filing surcharge and interest figures from Revenue.ie — What charges are there for late filing?
- A €450,000 inheritance from a parent gives €50,000 taxable after the €400,000 Group A threshold, at 33% = €16,500 CAT.
- You must file an IT38 once you cross 80% of the threshold (€320,000 for Group A) — even if no tax is due.
- The valuation date sets your deadline: Jan–Aug → 31 Oct that year; Sep–Dec → 31 Oct next year. ROS filers get a mid-November extension.
- File via myAccount (PAYE individuals) or ROS (agents / existing ROS users); the IT38 links to your PPSN.
- The top rejection causes are a wrong disponer PPSN and a missing valuation date — verify both before submitting.
Sources
- Revenue.ie — CAT group thresholds (Group A €400,000, B €40,000, C €20,000, from 2 Oct 2024)
- Revenue.ie — CAT thresholds, rates and aggregation rules (33% rate, 80% filing rule)
- Revenue.ie — Important dates for CAT (valuation date / pay-and-file deadlines)
- Revenue.ie — How and when do you pay and file? (ROS / myAccount / IT38S)
- Revenue.ie — Late-filing charges (5% / 10% surcharge, interest)
- Citizens Information — Capital Acquisitions Tax
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to file an IT38 if my inheritance is below the €400,000 threshold?
Possibly yes. You must file once your total Group A benefits since 5 December 1991 exceed 80% of the threshold — that is €320,000 — even if no tax is due. Below €320,000 with no prior benefits, there is generally no filing obligation. Always count prior gifts and inheritances first.
How much CAT is due on a €450,000 inheritance from a parent?
With the €400,000 Group A threshold, €50,000 is taxable at 33%, giving €16,500 of CAT — assuming you have taken no prior Group A benefits and are claiming no reliefs.
Is the valuation date the same as the date of death?
No. The valuation date is when the assets are available to be retained for the beneficiary's benefit — for most estates this is around the grant of probate, which can be months after death. It is a mandatory field on the IT38 and it sets your pay-and-file deadline.
Should I file the IT38 on ROS or through myAccount?
Either works and both submit the same return. Use myAccount if you are a PAYE individual with no ROS profile; use ROS if you (or your agent) already file other returns there. An agent filing on your behalf must use ROS. Filing and paying through ROS also unlocks the mid-November extended deadline.
What happens if I file the IT38 late?
A surcharge is added automatically: 5% of the tax if you file less than two months late (capped at €12,695), or 10% if more than two months late (capped at €63,485). Simple interest of roughly 8% per year also accrues on unpaid tax from the valuation date until paid.
Can I use the short IT38S form instead?
Only if you claim no reliefs (other than the €3,000 small gift exemption), the benefit is an absolute interest with no conditions, and it came from a single disponer and is not part of a larger same-day benefit. If you claim agricultural relief, business relief or dwelling-house exemption, you must file the full IT38 electronically.
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