Ireland: PRSI for posted and cross-border workers, and Class K (2026)

PRSI (Pay Related Social Insurance) is set by the Department of Social Protection (DSP) under the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 and collected by Revenue. This skill answers two questions: which country's social insurance a cross-border worker pays, and when an employee or pensioner pays PRSI at Class K on unearned income. The PRSI year is the calendar year. Rates rose on 1 October 2026, so 2026 has two period rates.

Related skills: Class S for the self-employed is in ie-prsi-class-s; Class A payroll mechanics, the PRSI credit and PAYE are in ie-payroll; tax residence, SARP and the PAYE Exclusion Order are in ie-cross-border. A PAYE Exclusion Order relieves income tax and USC only, not PRSI.

Who this applies to

• Employees sent abroad by an Irish employer, to another EU or EEA state, Switzerland, the UK, a bilateral agreement country, or anywhere else.
• Self-employed people resident in Ireland who work for a time in another EU or EEA state, or who work in two or more states.
• Workers posted into Ireland by a foreign employer, and their Irish payroll operator.
• People working in two or more states at the same time (for example a remote worker living in Ireland with clients or an employer elsewhere).
• Class K: employees and occupational pensioners under 66 whose only other income is unearned (rent, investment income, dividends, deposit interest); modified rate contributors (civil and public servants recruited before 6 April 1995, Classes B, C and D) with self-employed or unearned income; and certain public office holders (DSP: PRSI Class K).

Not covered: the benefit entitlements earned abroad and aggregation of contributions for pensions; frontier-worker sickness benefits; mariners and air crew rules (Article 11(4) and (5)); civil servants of other states; Volunteer Development Workers. Refer these to DSP's International Postings Section or a specialist.

Rates, bands and thresholds

Item	Rate or amount	Year	Source
Class A employee, weekly pay above EUR 352 (credit up to EUR 424)	4.2% to 30 September 2026; 4.35% from 1 October 2026	2026	https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/cb168977/PRSI_C20260116_Contribution_Rates_and_User_Guide_-_SW_14_-_English_Version_-_January_2026_.pdf-web.pdf
Class A employer, weekly pay EUR 38 to EUR 552	9.00% to 30 September 2026; 9.15% from 1 October 2026	2026	Same (SW14)
Class A employer, weekly pay above EUR 552 (all of the week's pay)	11.25% to 30 September 2026; 11.40% from 1 October 2026	2026	Same (SW14)
PRSI credit, Class A and H, weekly pay EUR 352.01 to EUR 424	Maximum EUR 12 a week, less one sixth of pay above EUR 352.01	2026	Same (SW14)
Class S (self-employed), period rates	4.2% to 30 September 2026; 4.35% from 1 October 2026; minimum EUR 650	2026	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/operational-guidelines-prsi-pay-related-social-insurance-contributions-and-classes/
Class K1 (public office holders, over EUR 100 a week)	4.2% to 30 September 2026; 4.35% from 1 October 2026; nil at EUR 5,200 a year or less (Class M)	2026	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/prsi-class-k-rates/
Class K9 (unearned income; modified rate contributors' other income), period rates	4.2% to 30 September 2026; 4.35% from 1 October 2026; no employer share; no upper limit	2026	https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/9c18b85f/20260520_Rates_of_Payment_Booklet_-_SW19_-_2026_May.pdf
Class S and K9 rate for 2026 income returned through self-assessment (blended)	4.2375%	2026	Same (SW19 and SW14 footnote)
Class S and K9 rate for 2025 income returned through self-assessment (blended)	4.125%	2025	Same
Classes B, C, D (pre-6 April 1995 public servants), employee, weekly pay EUR 352.01 to EUR 500	1.10% to 30 September 2026; 1.25% from 1 October 2026	2026	Same (SW14)
Class H (Defence Forces), employee above EUR 424 a week	4.1% to 30 September 2026; 4.25% from 1 October 2026	2026	Same (SW14)
Class J employer (most people with pay under EUR 38 a week from all employments)	0.70% to 30 September 2026; 0.85% from 1 October 2026	2026	Same (SW14)
Income below which a person is not a self-employed contributor (all income, including employment)	EUR 5,000 a year	2026	https://assets.gov.ie/38671/0aa2cf3d831a4076b1b6208e1287d9f9.pdf
EU posting, maximum anticipated duration (Article 12)	24 months	2026	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/operational-guidelines-prsi-for-those-working-abroad-and-the-special-prsi-collection-system/
Two-state work: "substantial activity" indicator in the state of residence	25%	2026	Same (DSP working abroad)
Bilateral posting periods	Australia 4 years; Canada 2; Japan 5; New Zealand 2; Republic of Korea 5; Québec 2; UK (Isle of Man and Channel Islands) 3; USA 5	2026	Same (DSP working abroad)
Retention on Irish PRSI for postings outside the EEA and agreement countries (SI 312/1996, article 98)	First 52 weeks	2026	Same (DSP working abroad)
Exemption for a non-resident employee of a non-EEA, non-agreement employer working here temporarily	Up to 52 weeks	2026	Same (DSP working abroad)

The 1 October 2026 rise comes from the schedule of increases in section 3(3) of the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2024 and its Table; section 21 of the 2005 Act now reads 4.35% for self-employment contributions, and section 13 reads 4.35% for employees. The same Act set the earlier steps on 1 October 2024 and 1 October 2025, which is why 2025 self-assessed income uses a blended 4.125% (revised Act, section 21).

The taxable base

Cross-border workers: one country only. Under Regulation 883/2004 a person is subject to the social security law of one state only (Article 11(1)). The rule is the state where the work is done (Article 11(3)(a)). The exceptions:

1. Posted employee (Article 12(1)). An employee of an employer that normally carries on its activities in Ireland, sent to another state to work for that employer, stays on Irish PRSI if the anticipated duration does not exceed 24 months and the employee is not replacing another posted person. DSP also requires: the employee was subject to Irish PRSI for at least one month before the posting (if hired to be posted), a direct relationship with the employer throughout, and that the employer is the one posting the employee.
2. Self-employed (Article 12(2)). A person normally self-employed in Ireland who does similar work in another state for up to 24 months stays on Irish PRSI (Class S). DSP requires at least two months' self-employed trading in Ireland just before.
3. Longer postings (Article 16). If the work is known from the start to exceed 24 months, the other state must agree in advance before DSP issues an A1. An unforeseen extension also needs the host state's agreement.
4. Two or more states (Article 13). An employee working in two or more states pays in the state of residence if a substantial part of the activity is there (DSP uses 25% as the indicator). Otherwise, with one employer, the state of the employer's registered office or place of business (Article 13(1)(b)(i)); Article 13(1)(b)(ii) to (iv) set three further rules for two or more employers. A self-employed person pays in the state of residence if a substantial part is there, otherwise where the centre of interest is (Article 13(2)). A person employed in one state and self-employed in another pays where employed (Article 13(3)). All income is then treated as earned in that one state (Article 13(5)), so an Irish-covered worker pays PRSI on pay for work done abroad.

The A1 is the evidence. Whichever state is competent issues the Portable Document A1. A worker posted out of Ireland keeps paying Irish PRSI through Irish payroll and is exempt in the host state. A worker posted into Ireland with an A1, a certificate of coverage under a bilateral agreement, or a DSP 52-week exemption is not liable to Irish PRSI on that employment; without one of these, PRSI is due (TDM Part 02-04-01). The employer leaves the exempt pay out of "pay for PRSI" and keeps the certificate; no PRSI class is entered for these three exemption reasons (PRSI Employer Guide 2026).

Bilateral agreements. Ireland has agreements with Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Québec, the UK (for the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Herm and Jethou) and the USA. An Irish employer's employee posted temporarily to one of these stays on Irish PRSI for the period in the rates table and pays no social insurance there. Conditions: subject to Irish PRSI before the posting, employer resident or with a place of business in Ireland, posting temporary.

The UK. DSP applies the EU Regulation's posting rules to postings from Ireland to Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement's Protocol on Social Security and the Ireland-UK Convention on Social Security (commenced 31 December 2020) keep the arrangements in place.

Anywhere else. Article 98 of SI 312/1996 keeps an employee posted by an Irish employer on Irish PRSI for the first 52 weeks (longer only in exceptional cases), on application to the International Postings Section. It does not stop the other country charging its own contributions, so double contributions are possible.

Class K: what is charged. Class K9 is charged on unearned income: rent, investment income, dividends, and interest on deposits and savings (SW19). It applies to:

• employees and occupational pensioners under pensionable age (66) where unearned income is their only additional income; this applies whether the pension comes from their own employment or a spouse's or civil partner's;
• modified rate contributors (Classes B, C, D) on self-employed income from a trade or profession and on any unearned income.

There is no employer share, no upper limit and no benefit entitlement under Class K. DSP's Class K guidance limits the charge on employees and occupational pensioners to those under 66; for people born on or after 1 January 1958 who keep working past 66, see the "Not yet confirmed" line. A person whose total income from self-employment, earned and unearned, and employment is below EUR 5,000 a year, measured before capital allowances, is not a self-employed contributor at all (DSP leaflet SW74; Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, Schedule 1, Part 3, paragraph 3). An employee who also has self-employed income pays Class S, not Class K, on it (ie-prsi-class-s). Income from an occupational pension itself is Class M (no PRSI).

Deadlines and filing

• A1 for a posting out of Ireland: apply to DSP's International Postings Section (PRSI Special Collection Section, Waterford) before the posting starts, on form EUW1 for an employee or the separate self-employed form. The A1 must be available for inspection in the host state. Report any change in the posting to the Section.
• Two-state workers: apply to the institution of the state of residence. Its decision is provisional; it becomes definitive if no state contests it within two months, and the A1 then issues.
• Bilateral and article 98 postings: apply to the International Postings Section for the certificate of coverage or retention before the posting.
• Inbound workers: the foreign employer obtains the A1 or certificate of coverage from the home state before the work starts. A foreign employer with no Irish payroll may be approved for DSP's Special Collection System (monthly payments, year-end return SC1).
• Class K: returned on Form 11 with income tax and USC. Preliminary tax for 2026 (at least the lower of 90% of 2026 or 100% of 2025, or 105% of 2024 by direct debit) is due by 31 October 2026; the 2025 return and balance by the same date, extended to 18 November 2026 when both paying and filing are on ROS (Revenue: pay and file; preliminary tax). The 2026 return is due by 31 October 2027.
• Refunds: PRSI overpaid (for example deducted before an A1 issued) is reclaimed from DSP's PRSI Refunds Section after the year ends, within four years of the end of the contribution year.

Penalties and interest

• Late payment: interest at 0.0219% a day on income tax, PRSI and USC paid late, including a preliminary tax shortfall (Revenue interest guidelines).
• Late Form 11: surcharge of 5% of the tax due, up to EUR 12,695, if less than two months late; 10%, up to EUR 63,485, if later (Revenue: pay and file).
• No A1 for an inbound worker: Irish PRSI is due on the Irish employment income from the start (TDM Part 02-04-01). Where DSP decides a higher class applies, a Social Welfare Inspector collects the arrears from the employer (DSP guidelines).
• No A1 for an outbound worker: the host state can charge its contributions under Article 11, and Irish PRSI already paid must then be reclaimed.

Cross-border points

• Tax and social insurance follow different rules. An employee can be taxed in one country and insured in another. Residence for tax is in ie-cross-border; SARP and the PAYE Exclusion Order relieve tax, not PRSI.
• Remote workers. A person living in Ireland and working from home for an employer elsewhere in the EU is covered by the Irish system under Article 11(3)(a) if all the work is done here, or under Article 13 if work is split. An employer with no Irish presence then needs an Irish payroll or the Special Collection System.
• Third-country nationals legally resident in a member state can use the Regulations (DSP).
• Class K and residence. People classified by Revenue as non-resident who hold only unearned income are not self-employed contributors (DSP leaflet SW74), so Class K is an Irish-resident issue.
• Foreign unearned income of an Irish-resident employee under 66 (foreign dividends, foreign rent) is unearned income for Class K. Foreign tax credits for income tax are in ie-foreign-tax-and-withholding.

Worked examples

Example 1: employee posted to Germany for 18 months, calendar 2026

An Irish software company posts an employee to its client's site in Munich from 1 January 2026 for an anticipated 18 months. She has been on the Irish payroll for three years. Her salary is EUR 6,500 a month, well above EUR 552 a week in every week. The company gets an A1 from DSP before she leaves.

• The posting is under 24 months and she is not replacing another posted worker, so Article 12(1) keeps her on Irish PRSI. No German social insurance is due while the A1 runs.
• Employee PRSI: 9 months at 4.2% on EUR 6,500 is EUR 2,457.00; 3 months at 4.35% is EUR 848.25. Total EUR 3,305.25.
• Employer PRSI: 9 months at 11.25% is EUR 6,581.25; 3 months at 11.40% is EUR 2,223.00. Total EUR 8,804.25.
• Total PRSI for 2026: EUR 12,109.50, paid through Irish payroll.
• The edge case: if the client extends the project to 30 months, the posting goes past 24 months. The company must ask DSP to get Germany's agreement under Article 16 before the 24 months end, or German contributions apply from that point.

name: Posted employee, EUR 6,500 a month, Irish PRSI with A1, calendar 2026
inputs:
  monthly_pay: 6500
  months_old: 9
  months_new: 3
steps:
  - ee_old: monthly_pay * months_old * 0.042
  - ee_new: monthly_pay * months_new * 0.0435
  - employee_prsi: ee_old + ee_new
  - er_old: monthly_pay * months_old * 0.1125
  - er_new: monthly_pay * months_new * 0.114
  - employer_prsi: er_old + er_new
  - total_prsi: employee_prsi + employer_prsi
expected:
  ee_old: 2457.00
  ee_new: 848.25
  employee_prsi: 3305.25
  er_old: 6581.25
  er_new: 2223.00
  employer_prsi: 8804.25
  total_prsi: 12109.50

Example 2: employee with rental income, Class K for 2026

Seán, aged 52, is a Class A employee earning EUR 60,000. He has no self-employed income. In 2026 he has net rental profit of EUR 20,000 (after expenses and capital allowances) and Irish deposit interest of EUR 1,000. He returns both on his 2026 Form 11.

• His only additional income is unearned, and he is under 66, so Class K9 applies to it.
• Base: EUR 20,000 plus EUR 1,000 is EUR 21,000. His total income is far above EUR 5,000.
• Rate: income returned through self-assessment for 2026 uses the blended rate of 4.2375%, not the two period rates.
• Class K: EUR 21,000 at 4.2375% is EUR 889.88. This is above EUR 650, so the minimum question does not arise.
• The edge case: had Seán been born in 1955, so over pensionable age in 2026 and born before 1 January 1958, Class K would not apply to his rent (DSP limits Class K for employees and occupational pensioners to those under 66, and the PRSI Employer Guide gives nil liability for people born before 1 January 1958 who are over pensionable age), and the PRSI on the unearned income would be nil.

name: Employee under 66 with rent EUR 20,000 and interest EUR 1,000, Class K 2026
inputs:
  rent: 20000
  interest: 1000
  blended_rate: 0.042375
  under_66: 1
steps:
  - unearned: rent + interest
  - class_k: round(unearned * blended_rate * under_66, 2)
  - class_k_if_born_before_1958_and_over_66: unearned * blended_rate * 0
expected:
  unearned: 21000.00
  class_k: 889.88
  class_k_if_born_before_1958_and_over_66: 0.00

Ask the client first

1. Where will the person live and where will they physically work, day by day, and for how long is the work expected to last?
2. Who employs and pays them, and where is that employer based and normally active? Is the person replacing someone already posted?
3. Was the person on Irish PRSI (or self-employed in Ireland) immediately before the posting, and for how long?
4. Is there already an A1, certificate of coverage or DSP exemption, and for which dates?
5. For Class K: the person's age, PRSI class (A, or B, C, D for pre-1995 public servants), any self-employed income, and the amounts of rent, dividends and interest.

Sources

Source	URL	Read on
DSP, Operational Guidelines: PRSI for those working abroad and the Special PRSI Collection System (updated 7 January 2026)	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/operational-guidelines-prsi-for-those-working-abroad-and-the-special-prsi-collection-system/	2026-10-23
Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, consolidated text, Articles 11 to 13 and 16	https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:02004R0883-20190731	2026-10-23
DSP, Operational Guidelines: PRSI contributions and classes (updated 6 January 2026)	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/operational-guidelines-prsi-pay-related-social-insurance-contributions-and-classes/	2026-10-23
DSP, PRSI Class K rates (updated 20 January 2026)	https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-social-protection/publications/prsi-class-k-rates/	2026-10-23
DSP, SW14 PRSI Contribution Rates and User Guide, January 2026	https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/cb168977/PRSI_C20260116_Contribution_Rates_and_User_Guide_-_SW_14_-_English_Version_-_January_2026_.pdf-web.pdf	2026-10-23
DSP, SW19 Rates of Payment 2026 (May 2026)	https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/9c18b85f/20260520_Rates_of_Payment_Booklet_-_SW19_-_2026_May.pdf	2026-10-23
DSP, SW74 guide to PRSI for the self-employed (January 2025 edition; used only for the EUR 5,000 test and the non-resident rule)	https://assets.gov.ie/38671/0aa2cf3d831a4076b1b6208e1287d9f9.pdf	2026-10-23
DSP, PRSI Employer Guide, January 2026	https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/338359b5/20260122_PRSI_Employer_Guide_-_January_2026_-_English_Version_copy.pdf.final.pdf	2026-10-23
Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, section 21 (revised)	https://revisedacts.lawreform.ie/eli/2005/act/26/section/21/revised/en/html	2026-10-23
Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, Schedule 1 (revised)	https://revisedacts.lawreform.ie/eli/2005/act/26/schedule/1/revised/en/html	2026-10-23
Revenue, TDM Part 02-04-01, tax equalisation and assignee PRSI (reviewed September 2026)	https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-02/02-04-01.pdf	2026-10-23
Revenue, pay and file system	https://www.revenue.ie/en/self-assessment-and-self-employment/guide-to-self-assessment/pay-file-system.aspx	2026-10-23
Revenue, preliminary tax	https://www.revenue.ie/en/self-assessment-and-self-employment/guide-to-self-assessment/preliminary-tax.aspx	2026-10-23
Revenue, guidelines for charging interest on late payment	https://www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/collection/debt-management/Guidelines-for-charging-interest-on-late-payment-20240715074235.pdf	2026-10-23

Not yet confirmed: whether Class K extends past 66 for employees born on or after 1 January 1958 who have not been awarded the State Pension (Contributory) (the PRSI Employer Guide and SW74 keep employee and Class S PRSI running to 70 for them, but DSP's Class K guidance still says under 66); whether the EUR 650 minimum applies to Class K9 (SW14 and SW19 attach the self-employed footnote with the minimum to K9, but the 2005 Act sets the minimum for self-employment contributions and DSP's guidelines do not repeat it for Class K); DSP's Class K page prints blended rates of 4.0125% (2025) and 4.235% (2026), which conflict with SW14 and SW19 (4.125% and 4.2375%) and with the arithmetic of the period rates, so this skill uses SW14 and SW19; the posting period under the Ireland-UK Convention for Great Britain and Northern Ireland, since DSP's page applies the EU Regulation's 24 months to UK postings without citing the Trade and Cooperation Agreement Protocol.

Contributed by Michael Cutajar.