SPSV LICENSE - TAX QUERIES

I've had an SPSV Licence for the past 15 years- I got it originally when I got laid off in 2000.
It was a straightforward process. I have never used the licence as I managed to get a job reasonably quickly but I have always renewed the licence to give me option to drive minibuses etc at some stage if I had no employment. Basically it was a safeguard.

Now the process has changed as follows.

If you are in my position and just have the licence without using it, you still have to have a valid Tax Clearance Certificate at all times and to get this certificate you now have to register for Income Tax as a sole trader and also complete form 11 each year. You just fill in your income as zero basically.

My question is, if I registered as a sole trader and even though I did not make any money from the business- if I got made redundant from my job would I be entitled to unemployment benefit?

Do these regulations complicate things too much and is it time to ditch the licence or am I being overly cautious?

Any advice appreciated, thansk

Registering for income tax will not affect your social welfare entitlements from your current employment.

When submitting your income tax return you must include all your income including any employment income in the return.