Please do not hesitate to contact myself, any member of our team, or your usual PwC Ireland contact at any stage. We would be happy to tell you more about the topics raised in this issue or to include any interested parties on our mailing list.

Remember to visit our FDI website for more updates and detailed information (http://www.pwc.ie/fdi), including a range of recent publications.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day and welcome to the March 2019 edition of PwC’s newsletter on foreign direct investment (“FDI”) in Ireland.

Ireland continues to see strong inward investment from overseas with significant jobs and investment announcements over the last few months (see page 2). Strong economic growth also continues with 4.5% expected growth in GDP in 2019 and record levels of employment since 2008 (see page 8).

A newly published report by the IDA outlining Ireland’s results for 2018 shows that record numbers are now employed in the multinational sector (see page 4). This issue also takes a look at why Ireland is a prime location for companies in the aviation industry (see page 5) as well as upcoming news and events in FDI (see page 7). This issue also highlights a recent Government announcement in relation to a change in the Critical Skills Employment Permit (see page 6).

Liam Diamond

+353 1 792 6579 +353 86 405 6965 liam.diamond@pwc.com

www.pwc.ie/fdi

Investing in Ireland Issue 38, March 2019

1

Autodesk, a global leader in design software, announced the opening of its new offices at 1 Windmill Lane, which will serve as the company’s EMEA headquarters

Clark Hill, an American Law firm, announced a merger with the Irish firm O’Gradys Solicitors giving it a significant presence in Ireland

DePuy Synthes, a leading medical devices company, announced a €36 million investment in ground-breaking research and development projects at the Ireland Innovation Centre in Co. Cork, creating an additional 30 jobs

Expleo, a leading quality partner for digital business, relaunches under new brand name, creating 150 jobs and €8 million expansion in Ireland

Facebook, a global media company, announced plans to hire 1,000 people across 60 teams in Ireland in 2019, spanning the engineering, safety, legal, policy, marketing and sales teams

GW Plastics, a leading healthcare injection moulding and contract manufacturing company, announced plans to expand its advanced manufacturing operations in Sligo creating 200 new jobs

Hermes Investment Management, a leading fund management company, announced that it has established a management company, Hermes Fund Managers Ireland Limited, in response to the risks posed by Brexit as well as the firm’s broader strategic outlook and commercial expansion plans

IQVIA, a leading global provider of information, innovative technology solutions, and contract research, announced plans to create 100 new jobs in Dublin

Meissner, a global leader in single use systems for the pharmaceutical industry, announced plans to establish a manufacturing facility in Castlebar County Mayo, creating upwards of 150 jobs over the next 5 years

S&P Global Ratings, a leading provider of independent credit ratings, announced the opening of its new European headquarters in Dublin, the Irish headquarters will be the hub of a very strong EMEA network spanning 13 offices

Salesforce, a leading customer relationship management (CRM) platform, announced plans to establish “Salesforce Tower” in Dublin’s Silicon Docks, creating 1,500 jobs over five years

Truata, an expert provider of technologies and solutions to maximize data analytics, announced the opening of its new headquarters in Dublin

Recent FDI investment announcements

2

“Ireland is the logical choice for our first expansion into Europe. It has the fastest growing economy in the EU, while the EU itself is the second largest economy in the world. It is a very attractive destination for large numbers of the world’s leading businesses, and so developing a significant presence there is an obvious step for us.”John Hern, CEO, Clark Hill

“The response to placing our EMEA HQ in Dublin has been positive and we look forward to growing our presence here. We have built an impressive team over the last year and look forward to increasing our contributions to this vibrant community.”Andrew Anagnost, CEO, Autodesk

“We are excited about locating our new facility in County Mayo. The availability of a skilled work force and direct access to required services makes Castlebar an ideal location for this manufacturing facility. This is an important milestone for our organization, and with the outstanding support of the IDA, we are delighted by how quickly this facility will be operational.”Max Blomberg, Director of Operations, Meissner

3

Ireland 2018 Results

The IDA Ireland, the Government agency responsible for attracting FDI to Ireland, recently released a report showing the results for FDI in Ireland in 2018. The report shows that record numbers are now employed in the multinational sector, with an overall net increase of 14,040 jobs in 2018. The report also shows that overall employment figures in Ireland have increased by 7% in 2018.

The report finds that Ireland has managed to secure a number of Brexit related investments, with overall figures showing 55+ investments approved, along with 4,500+ associated jobs. Some of the companies that have recently located or expanded operations in Ireland include; Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, and Citi Group.

Ireland’s advantages in a post-Brexit context include; the use of the English language, commitment to the EU, a common law system, and the existing competitive proposition.

The highest number ever employed in the multinational sector - 229,057

Largest regional employment growth in 17 years

22,785 jobs created in FDI companies in 2018

58% of employment now located outside of Dublin

Two and a half times more jobs added under the ‘Winning’ strategy than under the IDA’s previous strategy 2010-2014

4

The Aviation Industry in Ireland

The aviation industry and Ireland have had a special relationship since the first transatlantic flight landed on Irish shores in 1919. Today, Ireland is globally recognised as a centre of excellence for the industry with the Irish Aviation Authority now responsible for managing 90% of all traffic that transits between Europe and North America.

So what makes Ireland so attractive to the aviation leasing industry?

Ireland’s success can be attributed to many factors including;

• Legacy experience which comes from 40 years involvement in the industry;

• A taxation regime which provides for a stable and competitive headline rate of corporation tax together with a tax depreciation write-off period of eight years;

• A comprehensive double tax treaty network with 73 countries currently in effect (and more in the pipeline awaiting ratification and under negotiation);

• And being recognised as a centre of excellence in this sector, with a highly skilled and experienced workforce.

In January 2019, over 3,000 aviation finance executives gathered in Dublin for the Global Airfinance Conference. According to a recent article published in Aviation Finance, this has re-enforced Ireland’s position as a global leader in the aviation industry.

The sector continues to grow with many new entrants continuing to use Ireland when setting up operations. CBD Aviation has recently extended its fleet to over 200 aircrafts and developed infrastructure in Dublin to support its expansion effort, Barclays Bank has backed Genesis in their new leasing platform which targets the commercial aircraft market, and the newly created Airborne Capital has secured a fund valued at $1 billion and has established offices in both Dublin and Shannon.

You can also check out details of the upcoming Dublin Aviation Summit and Irish Aviation Gala Ball in our News and Events section.

If you would like more information, please visit our dedicated aviation finance page.

Almost 80% of Ireland’s double tax treaties deliver a favourable withholding tax result for aviation finance companies

leasing companies based in Ireland

Over 50

An Irish-leased aircraft takes off every two seconds

Ireland has an

8 year write off of capital spend for tax purposes compared with typical 20-25 year economic life

Over 60% of all leased aircrafts worldwide are owned or managed in Ireland

5

Immigration & Global Mobility

In a welcome move, the Government announced that the spouse or de facto partner of a Critical Skills Employment Permit Holder will no longer need an Employment Permit in order to work in Ireland. This is evidence of the Government’s commitment to fostering migration policies that are more flexible in responding to labour market needs.

The change means that spouses and de facto partners of Critical Skills Employment Permit Holders will now be eligible to reside in Ireland on “Stamp 1” conditions, allowing direct access to employment without the need to obtain an employment permit.

Such a positive move will help to ensure that Ireland continues to attract key international talent and be a competitive location to live and work. It also recognises that spouses and de facto partners of Critical Skills Employment Permit Holders are often highly skilled and will therefore represent another talent pool to help address gaps in the skills market.

A new pre-clearance policy, which will apply to the non-EEA de-facto partners of Critical Skills Employment Permit Holders, is to be introduced from 1 April 2019. Applying to both visa and non-visa required nationals, the intention is that this pre-clearance will give certainty and direct access to employment to the individual prior to arrival in Ireland.

Stay in touch with our dedicated Immigration Team and keep up to date with all the latest in Irish Immigration news here.

6

FDI news & events

FutureScope

FutureScope is a platform to foster engagement and collaboration between Ireland’s entrepreneurial community and innovative multinational companies and encourage the exploration of new business opportunities arising from emerging technologies. The event will take place on 28 March 2019 in Dublin’s Convention Centre and will feature approximately 100 speakers and panellists, along with 40 exhibitors.

Dublin Tech Summit

The Dublin Tech Summit is Europe’s fastest growing tech conference and will take place on 10 and 11 April 2019 in Dublin’s RDS. In just two years, the Dublin Tech Summit has earned a place as Ireland’s largest tech event which brings together some of the most influential tech and business leaders for two days of growth & development, knowledge sharing, and networking. The Summit will see over 10,000 attendees from 70 different countries, 200 speakers, and 300 global media representatives.

InspireFest

InspireFest is a unique international festival which will take place in Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre on 16

and 17 of May 2019. The festival will include everything from art and design to science and technology, and offer speakers from leading companies within the technology industry. Inspirefest is where leaders – representing every sector of the industry – come together to seize new business opportunities, discover the latest innovations, and strengthen relationships.

Dublin Aviation Summit

The Dublin Aviation Summit will be held on 14 and 15 May 2019 in Dublin’s RDS. Now in its third year, the event aims to bring together the leading names in IT, Interiors, Maintenance and Repair Operations, Engines, and more to meet and network with the thriving Dublin leasing community. During this conference you can expect displays from hundreds of exhibiting companies showcasing their products and services, and a number of networking events to choose from.

Irish Aviation Gala Ball

The Irish Aviation Authority will hold its annual Gala Ball on 24 May 2019 in the Clayton Hotel, Dublin. The event will be in aid of the Irish Historical Flight Foundation and the Temple Street Foundation.

7

Leading the way

Economic update

in the world for:• Attracting high value investment

projects2

• Tax attractiveness for business models3

• Large city for FDI (Dublin)4

• Economic potential4

• FDI and technology transfer5

1st

in Eurozone for:• Relationship of pay to productivity5

• Attracting talented people from abroad5

1st

in Europe for:• Real GDP Growth1

• Investment incentives that are attractive to foreign investors1

• Paying business taxes9

• Changing Market Conditions1

• Flexibility and adaptability1

• Value added of Knowledge and Technology Intensive industries1

• Secondary school enrolments1

• Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (“STEM”) graduates6

• Overall small European region of the future (Dublin)4

• Small European region of the future for business friendliness (Cork)4

• Overall micro European city of the future (Limerick)4

• Micro European city of the future for economic potential (Shannon)4

• SMEs selling online, e-commerce turnover, cross-border SMEs online and open data6

• Innovators7

• IT & Communications (Dublin)8

• Life sciences (Dublin)8

1st

1 IMD World Competitiveness yearbook 2018

2 IBM Global Trends 2018

3 Digital Tax Index 2017: Locational Tax Attractiveness for Digital Business Models

4 Global Cities of the Future 2018/19 – FDI Intelligence

5 The Global Talent Competiveness Index 2019

6 The Digital Economy and Society Index (“DESI”) Report 2018

7 European Innovation Scoreboard 2018

8 The World’s Most Competitive Cities report

9 PwC/World Bank Group “Paying Taxes” Report 2019

Over 2.26m people are now at work in Ireland, the highest level since 2008.

Retail sales volumes for 2018 as a whole grew by 3.9%

GDP is expected to grow by 4.5% in 2019

Unemployment is expected to decline to 5.1% in 2019

Irish property price inflation now at lowest level in two and a half years

8

Should any of the topics covered in this newsletter be of particular interest to you, please do not hesitate to contact any member of the FDI team, or your usual PwC Ireland contact. If any of your colleagues would like to be included on our mailing list, please let us know.

Please click on our website www.pwc/ie/fdi for additional information. Various topics of interest for foreign investors can be found in the publications link in the tax section, including:

Brexit

CEO Survey

Budget 2019

Tax Facts 2018

Previous issue of Investing in Ireland

Would you like to know more?

This content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional advisors.

© 2019 PricewaterhouseCoopers. All rights reserved. PwC refers to the Irish member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.

Contacts

Jean Delaney +353 1 792 6280 jean.delaney@pwc.com

Liam Diamond +353 1 792 6579 liam.diamond@pwc.com

Brian Leonard +353 1 792 6179 brian.a.leonard@pwc.com

Denis Harrington +353 1 792 8629 denis.harrington@pwc.com

Andy O’Callaghan +353 1 792 6247 andy.ocallaghan@pwc.com

Mary Honohan +353 1 792 8609 mary.honohan@pwc.com

Susan Kilty +353 1 792 6740 susan.kilty@pwc.com

Ronan MacNioclais +353 1 792 6006 ronan.macnioclais@pwc.com

Joe Tynan +353 1 792 6399 joe.tynan@pwc.com

James McNally +353 1 792 6844 james.o.mcnally@pwc.com

Terry O’Driscoll +353 1 792 8617 terry.odriscoll@pwc.com

John O’Leary +353 1 792 8659 john.oleary@pwc.com

Feargal O’Rourke +353 1 792 6480 feargal.orourke@pwc.com

Garrett Cronin +353 1 792 8807 garrett.cronin@pwc.com

www.pwc.ie/fdi