🇮🇪 Hiring in Ireland

💡 Everything you need to know to hire and manage employees in Ireland through Toku. Toku handles payroll processing, tax withholding, social contributions, and statutory compliance. This guide covers what you need to plan costs and manage your team.

At a Glance

Onboarding a New Hire

Plan for 1-2 business days between submitting a new hire and their start date: Ireland is one of the fastest countries to onboard in. Toku handles Revenue and PRSI registration; the employee should allocate their tax credits to the new employment with Revenue so they are not put on emergency tax for their first payslip.

Submit your new hire through the Toku platform and we take it from there: local employment agreement, statutory registrations, and payroll setup. See Onboard Contributors as a Client Admin in Toku for the step-by-step process, and the Country Readiness Live Tracker for lead times across all countries.

Employer Costs

On top of each employee's gross salary, you pay the following employer contributions (2026 rates):

As a rule of thumb, total cost of employment is roughly 111-113% of gross salary. There is no 13th or 14th month salary in Ireland.

Employees pay their own PRSI (4.20%, rising to 4.35% from October 2026), the Universal Social Charge (0.5% to 8% in bands), income tax at 20% and 40%, and their own 1.5% auto-enrolment contribution where eligible. These are withheld from gross salary, not added on top of your costs. Toku calculates and remits all of the above.

Compensation & Payroll

Toku runs one payroll per month in Ireland, reporting to Revenue in real time, and employees receive a payslip each cycle. The national minimum wage is EUR 14.15 per hour from 1 January 2026 for employees aged 20 and over. There are no mandatory bonuses or 13th month payments.

Employment Contracts & Probation

• Toku issues a compliant local employment agreement for every hire, including the written statements of terms required by law.
• Indefinite-duration contracts are the default. Successive fixed-term contracts beyond four years generally convert to indefinite duration unless objectively justified.
• Probation is 6 months under Toku's employment agreement, which is the statutory cap for private-sector probation (extendable to 12 months only in exceptional cases).

Working Hours

Ireland sets no statutory standard week; hours are set by contract, subject to a maximum average of 48 hours per week. There is no statutory overtime premium: overtime terms are contractual, though employees who work Sundays are entitled to a Sunday premium, and public holiday work earns an extra day's pay or equivalent time off. Employees may request remote working arrangements after six months of service, and employers must respond in writing within four weeks.

Leave Entitlements

Maternity, paternity, and parent's leave are paid by the state rather than the employer; many employers choose to top these up, but there is no obligation. Annual leave keeps accruing during family leave.

Public Holidays (2026)

Ireland has 10 public holidays in 2026. When one falls on a weekend, the following Monday is generally observed. Good Friday is not a public holiday.

Benefits: Required vs. Common Extras

Statutory (included in employer costs above): PRSI funds the state pension, jobseeker's, illness, maternity, paternity, and related benefits, and from 2026 the auto-enrolment pension scheme covers eligible employees without a workplace pension. Ireland has no universal free healthcare, so private health cover is a highly valued benefit.

Through Toku, Irish employees can access health, dental, life, and pension benefits provided with Irish Life and DeCare. See Ireland Health, Dental, Life & Pension Benefits for plan details and enrollment.

Other common extras in the Irish market include pension contributions above the auto-enrolment minimum, death-in-service cover, income protection, bike-to-work schemes, commuter tax-saver tickets, and the small benefit exemption (up to EUR 1,500 per year in non-cash benefits, tax-free). Toku can advise on the cost impact of any extras you want to offer.

Ending Employment

Ireland is not an at-will jurisdiction: dismissals need a valid reason and fair procedures, and employees with 12 or more months of service can bring unfair dismissal claims where the burden of proof sits with the employer, so involve Toku early if you are considering ending an employment relationship. For the process, see How to Terminate an Employee or Contractor.

Contracts commonly provide longer notice than these statutory minimums, especially for senior roles. Statutory redundancy pay applies after 2 years of service: two weeks' pay per year of service plus one bonus week, capped at EUR 600 per week, and paid tax-free. Ex-gratia severance above the statutory amount is common in restructurings.

Hiring Someone from Overseas?

EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals can work in Ireland without restriction. Other nationals generally need an employment permit: the Critical Skills Employment Permit for highly skilled roles (minimum salary EUR 40,904 with a relevant degree, or EUR 68,911 without, from 1 March 2026) or the General Employment Permit for other eligible occupations. Processing typically takes 4 to 12 weeks, so talk to Toku before extending an offer to a candidate who needs sponsorship.

---

Last verified July 2026. This guide is for general information and doesn't constitute legal or tax advice. Your Toku account manager can confirm specifics for your situation.