How to Apply for a Real and Continuous Link with Revenue and CRO

The Companies Act 2014 requires all Irish registered companies to have a Director who is “resident” in the EEA.

An alternative to having a resident Director is to have either a Section 137 Bond or prove to Revenue that the applicant company has a “real and continuous link to one or more economic activities being carried on in the State”

A company has a real and continuous link with an economic activity that is being carried on in the State if one or more of the following conditions are satisfied by it:

1. The affairs of the company are managed by one or more persons from a place of business established in the State and that person or those persons is or are authorised by the company to act on its behalf;
2. The company carries on a trade in the State;
3. The company is a subsidiary or a holding company of a company or other body corporate that satisfies either or both of the conditions specified in paragraphs (1) and (2);
4. The company is a subsidiary of a company, another subsidiary of which satisfies either or both of the conditions specified in paragraphs (1) & (2).

To apply to the Revenue Commissioners (Revenue) for a statement proving that a company has a link, the following information must be provided:

1. Company’s registered number
2. Company’s tax registration number
3. Company’s trading address in the state
4. Company’s registered office address
5. Confirmation that the company has been trading in Ireland for at least twelve months with supporting documentation such as Financial Statements, customer/supplier lists.
6. A description of the nature and duration of the “link”

Revenue determines whether or not a company has a real and continuous link and each application is judged on its merits. They decide on the basis that the company must have some active participation in generating income in the State.

When Revenue issues their statement in favour of the company it should be filed within 2 months in the Companies Registration Office (CRO).

If a company applies for and is granted a certificate from the CRO that the company has a real and continuous link with one or more economic activities that are carried on in Ireland, the company will be exempted from the requirement to have an EEA resident Director from the date of the certificate and until as long as the certificate is valid.