Redundancy Pay in Ireland 2026: How Much You Get and How It Is Calculated

Losing your job to redundancy is stressful, but Irish law guarantees most employees a statutory lump sum on the way out. If you have at least 2 years of continuous service, you are entitled to 2 weeks' gross pay for every year worked, plus 1 additional week, with weekly pay capped at €600. The statutory payment is completely tax-free.

This guide explains how statutory redundancy pay works in the Republic of Ireland in 2026: who qualifies, how the formula applies, what counts as reckonable service, worked examples for 5, 10 and 20 years of service, the tax position, what happens when an employer cannot pay, and how to bring a dispute to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

Information last verified on 20 July 2026. This page is general legal information for the Republic of Ireland, not legal advice.

Work out your own figure first: our free Ireland redundancy calculator applies the statutory formula, the €600 weekly cap and the reckonable-service rules to your own dates and pay in under a minute.

Who qualifies for statutory redundancy pay?

To receive a statutory redundancy payment you need 104 weeks (2 years) of continuous service with the same employer, in employment that is insurable under the Social Welfare Acts. The entitlement comes from the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2014. Service is only counted from your 16th birthday, so any employment before then does not add to the calculation.

The redundancy must also be genuine: the job itself disappears, whether because the business closes, moves, needs fewer people or reorganises the work. If you believe the redundancy was a cover for getting rid of you personally, or that you were unfairly selected, that is an unfair dismissal question instead. A redundancy payment and an unfair dismissal claim are alternatives rather than a package, so in practice you have to choose between them for the same dismissal.

If you were paid below the national minimum wage, the calculation may be based on the minimum wage rather than your actual pay. That protection does not extend to statutory apprentices or to employees under 20 on sub-minimum rates. See our guide to the minimum wage in Ireland for the current rates.

How is statutory redundancy calculated?

The statutory formula has three parts:

1. 2 weeks' gross pay for every year of service, with part years counted pro-rata (days divided by 365).
2. Plus 1 additional week's pay (a single bonus week, added once).
3. Weekly pay is capped at €600, which works out at €31,200 a year. If you earn more than €600 a week, the excess is simply ignored for the statutory calculation.

So an employee with exactly 10 years of reckonable service is due 21 weeks' pay: 2 weeks for each of the 10 years, plus the single bonus week.

What counts as a week's pay

Gross weekly pay for redundancy purposes includes your normal weekly wage, your average regular overtime and benefits-in-kind. If you are paid monthly, your normal monthly pay is divided by 4.33 to reach a weekly figure.

If your pay varies from week to week, your weekly pay is averaged over the last 52 weeks you actually worked before the redundancy date. Average regular overtime is worked out by ignoring the 13 weeks immediately before the redundancy date, totalling the overtime earned in the 26 weeks before that, and dividing by 26. If you did not work in some of those 26 weeks, the window is extended back one week for every week not worked, so the divisor still represents 26 weeks of actual work.

Worked examples: 5, 10 and 20 years of service

The table below shows the statutory entitlement at different service lengths and pay levels. Weeks due = (2 x full years) + 1, and any pay above €600 a week is capped.

Real service histories are rarely round numbers. Part years count pro-rata, and some absences in the final 3 years are deducted, so use the redundancy calculator to apply the rules to your exact start and finish dates.

What service counts? The reckonable service rules

Your lump sum is based on reckonable service, which is your continuous service minus certain absences. The single most important rule: absences are only deducted if they fall within the 3 years ending on your termination date. Anything earlier in your career is counted in full, no matter what kind of absence it was.

Time that always counts

Within those final 3 years, the following periods still count as reckonable service:

• Time actually worked, and annual holidays.
• Absence due to illness, up to the limit below.
• Absence agreed with your employer, such as a career break.
• Basic and additional maternity leave.
• Basic adoptive, paternity, parental, parent's and carer's leave.
• Any period of lock-out, and periods where continuity is preserved under the Unfair Dismissals Acts.

Time that does not count (final 3 years only)

• Absence caused by an occupational injury beyond 52 consecutive weeks.
• Absence through ordinary illness beyond 26 consecutive weeks.
• Any period spent on strike.
• Any period of lay-off.

A note on the pandemic years: periods on the TWSS or EWSS wage-subsidy schemes count as reckonable service, but pandemic lay-off periods do not. A special tax-free payment of up to €2,268 existed for people made redundant between 13 March 2020 and 31 January 2025 who lost reckonable service to COVID-19 lay-offs, under the Redundancy Payments (Amendment) Act 2022. That window has now closed.

Is redundancy pay tax-free in Ireland?

The statutory redundancy payment is entirely tax-free. You receive the full calculated amount with no income tax, USC or PRSI deducted from it.

Many employers pay more than the statutory minimum, often called an ex gratia or severance payment. Those extra amounts are not automatically tax-free: Revenue applies separate exemptions and reliefs to termination payments, and part of an ex gratia sum can be taxable as pay. If you are offered a package above the statutory figure, check the tax treatment with Revenue or an accountant or solicitor before you sign anything.

What happens if my employer cannot pay?

Your employer is responsible for paying the statutory lump sum, normally on your termination date. If the payment is made in full, no forms need to be filed to claim it.

If your employer does not pay, first apply to the employer directly using form RP77. If the employer is insolvent, or simply refuses or fails to pay after that, you can apply to have the payment made from the Social Insurance Fund through the Department of Social Protection under the Redundancy Payment Scheme.

Notice, job hunting and leaving early

A redundancy dismissal still requires statutory notice on the normal scale, from 1 week up to 8 weeks depending on service: see our full guide to notice periods in Ireland. The clock only starts when you receive written notice with a termination date; being told your role is 'at risk' does not start it.

If you have at least 104 weeks' service, section 7 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1979 entitles you to reasonable paid time off during the last 2 weeks of redundancy notice to look for new work or arrange training, and your employer may ask for evidence that you are using the time for that. Outstanding annual leave is taken during the notice period or paid in lieu. If you want to leave early to start a new job, use form RP6 and get your employer's consent, because leaving early without agreement can forfeit your redundancy payment.

Disputes go to the WRC, and you have at least 1 year

If your employer disputes your entitlement, miscalculates the sum or will not engage, you can refer the dispute to the Workplace Relations Commission using its online complaint form. Redundancy-payment disputes have a longer deadline than most employment claims: 1 year (52 weeks) from the date of dismissal, rather than the general 6-month limit.

That 1 year is not an absolute cut-off. Under section 24(2A) of the Redundancy Payments Act 1967 the WRC can allow a claim made before the end of 2 years (104 weeks) from the date of dismissal where you show the delay was due to reasonable cause, so do not assume a late claim is automatically lost. Our step-by-step guide to making a WRC complaint covers the form, the hearing and appeals.

For more Irish guides on pay, leave and dismissal, visit our Ireland law hub.

This page is general legal information for the Republic of Ireland, not legal advice, and redundancy situations often involve contract terms and negotiations that legal information cannot cover. For advice on your own situation, consult a solicitor. The Workplace Relations Commission handles redundancy disputes, the Department of Social Protection administers the Social Insurance Fund, and Revenue decides tax treatment.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is statutory redundancy pay calculated in Ireland?

The formula is 2 weeks' gross pay for every year of service plus 1 additional week, with weekly pay capped at €600. Part years count pro-rata. For example, 10 years of service on €600 a week or more gives 21 weeks' pay, which is €12,600.

Do I get redundancy pay if I have worked less than 2 years?

No. The statutory entitlement requires 104 weeks (2 years) of continuous service in insurable employment. Your contract or your employer may still offer a discretionary payment, but the law does not require one below 2 years.

Is redundancy pay taxable in Ireland?

The statutory redundancy payment is completely tax-free. Extra ex gratia amounts an employer adds on top are not automatically tax-free and can be partly taxable, so check the position with Revenue before accepting a package.

What is the €600 weekly cap on redundancy pay?

Statutory redundancy is calculated on gross weekly pay up to a ceiling of €600 a week, equivalent to €31,200 a year. If you earn more than that, the calculation still uses €600, so higher earners receive proportionately less than their actual wage would suggest.

What if my employer refuses to pay or has gone bust?

Apply to your employer first using form RP77. If the employer is insolvent or still does not pay, you can claim the statutory lump sum from the Social Insurance Fund through the Department of Social Protection.

How long do I have to bring a redundancy dispute to the WRC?

You have 1 year (52 weeks) from the date of dismissal to refer a redundancy-payment dispute to the Workplace Relations Commission. That is longer than the 6-month limit that applies to most other employment complaints, and it is not an absolute cut-off: the WRC can extend it to 2 years where you show the delay was due to reasonable cause.

Does sick leave or lay-off reduce my redundancy payment?

Only if it happened in the final 3 years before your termination date. Within that window, illness absence beyond 26 consecutive weeks, occupational-injury absence beyond 52 consecutive weeks, strike periods and lay-off periods are deducted. Anything earlier counts in full.