How to hire and pay employees in Ireland
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Before hiring
Before hiring employees in Ireland, there are some key things you’ll need to know. Firstly, the basic annual paid leave entitlement for an employee is four weeks. The employer can decide to provide a longer vacation period—but it should be noted that work-life balance is highly valued in Ireland.
In Ireland, the employee and the employer are required to contribute to the pay-related social insurance system (PRSI) that covers a range of social welfare benefits. The employee's contribution is 4% and the employer's share is 11.05% of taxable employment income.
We know keeping track of all this might sound overwhelming—but it doesn’t have to be. A solution like Oyster eliminates the barriers for you. With Oyster, you can automate compliance across 180+ countries, easily managing HR and payroll—all in one, easy-to-use platform.
Get an overview of what you need to know when hiring in Ireland below.
At a glance
CURRENCY
EUR
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
ENGLISH, IRISH (GAEILGE)
PAYROLL FREQUENCY
MONTHLY, WEEKLY
EMPLOYER TAXES
8.8% - 11.05%
13th / 14th SALARY
N/A
Good to know
- The basic annual paid leave entitlement for an employee in Ireland is four weeks. The employer can decide to provide a longer vacation period.
- The employee and the employer are required to contribute to the pay-related social insurance system (PRSI) that covers a range of social welfare benefits. An employee's contribution is 4% and the employer's share is 11.05% of taxable employment income.
- Work-life balance is highly valued in Ireland. Even though overtime rules are not specified by law, it's become increasingly uncommon to expect employees to work late nights and weekends. The typical policies supporting work-life balance include annual leave, parental leave, and flexible working hours.
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Labor laws in
Ireland
Working hours and overtime
The average Irish working week is 39 hours and the legal maximum 48 hours. Overtime pay and maximum overtime hours have not been clearly specified in Irish legislation and are usually determined through collective agreements or agreed upon between the employer and employee.
Minimum wage
Employment contracts
There’s no statutory requirement for a contract’s language, but Irish employment contracts are usually provided in English.
The probationary period in Ireland typically lasts three months, but can be longer.
There is an Irish state pension that is funded by employer and employee Social Security (PRSI) contributions. Employers can also contribute towards a flexible private pension called a PRSA (Personal Retirement Savings Accounts). The majority of employers in Ireland contribute to these plans.
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Benefits and leave in
Ireland
Vacation time
The standard annual paid leave entitlement in Ireland is four weeks. When the normal working week is five days, the employee entitlement is 20 days.
Sick leave
An employee in Ireland has no legal entitlement to sick pay—it’s at the discretion of the employer. If an employee is sick or injured during their annual leave and can prove that to their employer through a medical certificate, then the leave taken during this period will not count as annual leave.
Maternity and paternity leave
Parental leave
If an employee becomes pregnant while employed, they have the right to take 26 weeks’ maternity leave. They may take this time off work from full-time, casual or part-time employment, no matter how long they have been working for the company. Paternity leave gives new parents two weeks off of work. People who adopt children are also entitled to get adoptive leave. Each parent is entitled to two weeks paid parent’s leave for a child born or adopted on or after November 1st, 2019.
In Ireland, there is also carer's leave. This allows employees to take unpaid time off work to provide full-time care for people that require this care.
Holidays
View a list of recognized public holidays in Ireland here.
Employer tax
Employers of Irish employees are required to pay social security (PRSI) tax, which is 11.05% of an employee’s salary.
Individual tax
In Ireland, employees making up to €33,800 annually are taxed 20% and employees making a salary above €33,800 are taxed 40%. Employees also pay social security (PRSI) and a universal social charge ranging from 0.5% to 11%.
Termination in
Ireland
In Ireland, employers are not required to provide severance pay for employees who are terminated. Upon termination, the employee has the right to receive salary for work completed. They should also receive payment for earned unused annual leave.
In redundancy situations, an employee may be entitled to a statutory redundancy payment.
If a notice period hasn't been specified in an employment contract, the following minimum notice periods apply in Ireland:
- 13 weeks to two years: One week
- Two to five years: Two weeks
- Five to 10 years: Four weeks
- 10 to 15 years: Six weeks
- 15 years or more: Eight weeks
Start hiring employees in
Ireland
Setting up a business entity everywhere you want to hire a new employee isn’t scalable—it takes too long and the legal fees are high. At the same time, understanding and adhering to the local labor laws and employee expectations can be complex and time consuming. And it’s hard to find reliable information on up-to-date employment information for all the countries where you’re considering hiring. Not to mention tracking down invoices and managing employee contracts over email and spreadsheets—that gets messy fast.
We can’t afford to take risks when it comes to compliance—we need to make sure we follow the local guidelines, especially when it comes to taxes and legalities.
With Oyster, you can manage HR and payroll, and automate compliance across 180+ countries—all in one, easy-to-use platform.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this resource is for general educational purposes only and shall not be construed as legal advice. While Oyster strives to provide current and accurate information, Oyster makes no warranties or representations as to the correctness of the content provided and accepts no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the content provided. By using this resource you acknowledge and agree that you do so at your own risk. The content of this resource is subject to change without notice.
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