Basic Facts

Ireland, Irish Éire, is a country of western Europe occupying five-sixths of the westernmost major island of the British Isles. The country ranks among the top 10 wealthiest countries in the world in terms of GDP per capita and ranks highly in human development, freedom of the press, economic freedom, and civil liberties. Ireland ranks well in most indicators for quality of life, particularly in relation to the ability to make ends meet, sense of purpose in life, and optimism. Overall, there has been an increase in life satisfaction among its citizens since 2011.

 

*Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in Ireland.

Capital :
Dublin
Currency :
Euro (€, EUR)
Languages spoken :
Irish, English
Population :
5.03 million (2021 est.)
Minimum wage 2023 :
€12.7 (hourly)
Cost of Living index :
$$$$ (16 of 139 nations)
Payroll Frequency :
Monthly
VAT - standard rate :
23%
GDP - real growth rate :
13.5% (2021 est.)

Statutory Holidays

The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2024.

Date
Holiday Name
Extra Information
January 1
New Year’s Day
February 5
February Bank Holiday
Movable - First Monday in February
March 17
St. Patrick’s Day
April 1
Easter Monday
Movable - First Sunday after the first full moon following the northern spring equinox
May 6
May Bank Holiday
Movable - First Monday in May
June 3
June Bank Holiday
Movable - First Monday in June
August 5
August Bank Holiday
Movable - First Monday in August
October 28
October Bank Holiday
Movable - Last Monday in October
December 25
Christmas Day
December 26
Saint Stephen's Day

Contract Sharing Time


The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in Ireland is 4 business days assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal and external review, directly leading to a time delay.

NOTE: This number is subject to change and is only an estimation of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.

What You Need To Know


  • There is no legal right to pay for working extra hours and there are no statutory levels of overtime pay.
  • Employers must inform fixed-term contractual employees of vacancies for permanent positions.
  • At present, in Ireland, all employees can ask their employers for the right to work remotely, but there is no legal framework around which a request can be made and how it should be dealt with by the employer. A new law will set out clearly how these requests should be facilitated as far as possible.

Labor Conditions


Working Hours

The maximum number of hours that an adult employee can work in an average working week is 48 hours. During the workday, employees must receive 15 minutes for every four and a half hours they work, or 30 minutes for every six hours.

 

Overtime

There is no legal right to pay for working extra hours and there are no statutory levels of overtime pay. 

Employees should check their contract of employment for:

  • Whether they are required to work overtime
  • The rates of pay for overtime (if any).

 

Probation Period

Probation periods cannot be more than six months. In exceptional circumstances, the probation can be extended for up to a further six months (up to a maximum of 12 months in total). For a fixed-term contract, the length of any probationary period must be proportionate to the expected duration of the contract and the nature of the work and cannot be included in any renewal of a fixed-term contract (for the same function).

Termination Notice Period

The statutory minimum for termination notice period by employers depend on employment duration:

Duration of Employment (Continuous) Minimum Termination Notice
13 weeks to less than 2 years 1 week
2 years or more but less than 5 years 2 weeks
5 years or more but less than 10 years 4 weeks
10 years or more but less than 15 years 6 weeks
15 years or more 8 weeks

Leave / Time Off

Annual Leave

The statutory maximum duration of annual leave is four weeks. However, the actual annual leave entitlement depends on how much time an employee has worked in a leave year.

Sick Leave

Employees are entitled to five days of paid sick leave per year. The sick leave is paid by employers at a rate of 70% of an employee’s wage, subject to a daily threshold of €110. An employee has to obtain a medical certificate and has worked for their employer for at least 13 weeks to avail of the new statutory sick pay.

Parental Leave

Parents can take up to 26 weeks of unpaid parental leave for each eligible child before their 12th birthday. Adoptive parents adopting children between 10 and 12 years old are entitled to up to two years of parental leave after the date of the adoption order.

 

Maternity Leave

A pregnant employee is entitled to 26 weeks paid maternity leave, and 16 weeks unpaid maternity leave immediately taken after the initial 26 weeks. Of the maternity leave, at least two weeks before and four weeks after the expected due date must be taken by the employee.

 

Paternity Leave

Paternity leave gives new parents two weeks of paid time off work, starting at any time in the first six months after the birth’s birth. It is also available to adopters; sex-same couples; the spouse, civil partner, cohabitant of the mother of the child; or the parent of a donor-conceived child.

 

Adoption Leave

Adoptive leave provides 24 weeks of paid leave from work to one parent of the adopting couple or a parent who is adopting alone.

Other Types of Paid Leave

Parent’s Leave

Parent’s leave entitles each parent to seven weeks’ leave during the first two years of a child’s life, or in the case of adoption, within two years of the placement of the child with the family. 

 

Force Majeure Leave

The maximum amount of leave is three days in any 12-month period or five days in a 36-month period.

 

Jury Service

An employee or an apprentice who is called for jury service be given time off to attend the court. 

Statutory Benefits

Social security in Ireland is called Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI). Employers’ contributions depend on employees’ earnings and their social insurance classes. There are 11 different social insurance classes in Ireland: A, B, C, D, E, H, J, K, M, S, and P. Most employees in Ireland pay PRSI Class A.

 

The PRSI contributions by employers and employees for Class A employees are broken down as follows:

Employees' Weekly Earnings (Before Tax)
Employer Contributions
Employee Contributions
Up to €352
8.8%
0%
Over €352 and up to €410
8.8%
4% (Reduced by a tapered weekly PRSI credit)*
Over €410
11.05%
4%

Health Insurance

Entitlement to health services is primarily based on residency and means, rather than on the payment of tax or PRSI. Any person regardless of nationality, who is accepted by the Health Service Executive (HSE) as being ordinarily resident in Ireland has eligibility for health services. A person is ordinarily resident if they have been living in Ireland for at least a year or intend to live there for at least one year. 

Other Insurances

Accident Insurance

The Occupational Injuries Scheme provides benefits for people injured or incapacitated by an accident at work or while traveling directly to or from work. The scheme also covers people who have contracted a disease as a result of the type of work they do.

Unemployment Insurance

Jobseeker’s Benefit (JB) is a weekly payment from the Department of Social Protection (DSP) to people who are out of work at least four days out of the 7-day social welfare employment week.

Public Pension

The retirement age in Ireland is 66 years old.

The State Pension (Contributory) is paid to people from the age of 66 who have enough Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions. Beneficiaries need to have 520 full-rate PRSI contributions (10 years’ contributions) to qualify. Only 260 of the 520 contributions can be voluntary contributions. There is no legal obligation on employers to provide occupational pension schemes for employees

Other Statutory Benefits

Illness Benefits

If an employee cannot work because they are sick or injured, and they have enough Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions, they can apply to the Department of Social Protection (DSP) for an Illness Benefit.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this Country Guide is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The contents of this Country Guide contain general information and may not reflect current legal developments or address your situation. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this Country Guide without seeking the advice or representation of a licensed attorney. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for actions you take or fail to take based on any content included in this Country Guide.

Information provided in this Country Guide is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. WorkMotion Software GmbH periodically adds, changes, improves, updates, or removes information without notice, and assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the contents of this Country Guide. This Country Guide may contain links to other websites. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.