Corporation tax receipts of €1.9 billion were collected in March, down by €700m, or 28.6%, on the same month last year.
The latest Exchequer Returns from the Department of Finance show that in the first quarter of the year, corporation tax receipts of €2.4 billion were €800m, or 24.8%, lower than the same period last year.
The corporate tax take for the first three months of the year is €1.1 billion, or 31.8%, below forecast.
“Indications suggest that this may reflect a timing issue, with a corresponding increase later in the year offsetting the decline,” the Department of Finance said.
Overall, the figures show that an exchequer surplus of €300m was recorded in the first quarter of the year. This compares to a deficit of €2.1 billion in the same period last year.
Total tax receipts of €20.1 billion in the first quarter were 1.8% ahead of the same period last year with increased income tax and VAT receipts offset by the decline in corporation tax.
The drop in corporation tax led to the overall tax receipts figure for the first quarter coming in lower than forecast.
Tax receipts of €8.1 billion were collected in March, down by €300m or 3.4% on the same month last year driven by the fall in corporation tax.
Income tax receipts of €2.6 billion were up on March last year by €300m, or 11.8%.
VAT receipts amounted to €2.9 billion in March, €200m, or 6.2% higher than a year earlier.
Total expenditure in the first quarter of the year amounted to €25.4 billion.
Non-voted expenditure accounted for €2.7 billion, which was €4.5 billion down on the same period in 2023, reflecting a transfer to the National Reserve Fund in February 2023.
