Ireland lifts PRSI by 0.15 points for payrolls from 1 October

Ireland lifts PRSI by 0.15 points for payrolls from 1 October

1 October 2026: Irish employers now apply higher Pay Related Social Insurance rates, from the first pay period of October. The Department of Social Protection's 2026 contribution guide sets the Class A employee rate at 4.35%, up from 4.2%, and the standard employer rate at 11.40%, up from 11.25%. The adjustment is the 0.15 percentage point step that follows earlier phased increases.

The guide splits Class A by weekly pay band. From 1 October 2026 the rates are:

• Subclass A0, pay of EUR 38 to 352: employee nil, employer 9.15% (was 9.00%)
• Subclass AX, EUR 352.01 to 424: employee 4.35%, employer 9.15%
• Subclass AL, EUR 424.01 to 552: employee 4.35%, employer 9.15%
• Subclass A1, over EUR 552: employee 4.35%, employer 11.40%

The weekly PRSI credit still applies to subclass AX, so the charge there is reduced on a tapered scale. Community Employment participants move too: the employer rate on subclasses A8 and A9 rises from 0.70% to 0.85%. Class H goes from 4.1% to 4.25%.

Self-employed people in Class S pay 4.35% on income, up from 4.2%, subject to a minimum payment of EUR 650. Saffery Ireland, an accountancy firm, notes that for 2026 returns filed through Revenue self assessment, the blended rate works out at 4.2375%, because the year straddles the change.

Saffery estimates the effect on an employee earning EUR 40,000 a year at the standard employer rate as about EUR 60 of extra employer cost over a full year. That figure is the firm's own illustration, not an official one.

Payroll software users should confirm the vendor has loaded the new rate tables before the first pay run dated on or after 1 October. Employers also need to check each employee's class, since the guide covers many classes beyond A and the changes differ by class.

Related on TrustList:

• India raises the EPFO wage ceiling to Rs 25,000 a month: employees earning Rs 15,000–25,000 now come under mandatory PF

Sources

• Department of Social Protection, PRSI 2026 Contribution Rates and User Guide (gov.ie), 16 January 2026
• Saffery Ireland, Upcoming PRSI rate changes effective 1 October 2026, 29 September 2026