Ireland – Budget 2023 Summary

Irish Budget 2023 was announced on the 27 September 2022.

 For Business

  • The Standard Rate Cut-Off Point to €40,000. The amount you can earn before you start to pay the higher rate of tax will be increased by €3,200.
  • Budget 2023 increases Personal, Employee and Earned Income credits by €75. From €1500 to €1,775.
  • Increase USC 2% band ceiling by €1,625 to €22,920.
  • The VAT rate for newspapers (including digital editions) will be reduced from 9% to zero.
  • VAT will also be reduced to zero for: Defibrillators, Period products, Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and nicotine replacement therapy medicines that are not currently zero-rated (such as patches and gels)
  • Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS)
  • Up to €2m for firms exporting and manufacturing with a plan to control energy costs.
  • Growth & Sustainability Loan Scheme – up to €500m in low-cost investment loans of up to 10 years available to SMEs, including farmers and fishers and small mid-caps, with no collateral required for loans up to €500,000.

 Energy Costs: 

  • Electricity credits for all households totalling €600 to be paid in three instalments of €200; the first payment will be made before Christmas, with two further instalments in the New Year.
  • Extension of Diesel (16c) and Petrol (21c) excise cuts and lower VAT rate on energy until the end of February.
  • Reduction in the oil reserve levy – will offset carbon tax increase meaning the price at the pump will not go up as a result of taxes or levies.
  • The 30 % and 50% reduction in public transport fares will be extended to the end of 2023.
  • Extra funds for schools, higher education institutions, and not-for-profit voluntary organisations including sports clubs to deal with rising energy costs.

 

Housing 

  • €500 tax credit for Renters per year starting in 2022.
  • Rentention of Help-to-Buy grant of up to €30,000 for first time buyers.
  • €1.3bn investment will support an overall package of measures to deliver more affordable housing including 5,550 households supported to buy or rent at an affordable price.
  • 11,830 new social homes to be delivered, including 9,100 new builds.
  • 9,600 new households to be directly supported by HAP & RAS.
  • €219m to fund programmes and supports for disabled people, older people and Travellers.
  • €65m to remediate homes affected by defects.
  • €50m for First Home Scheme, which will assist in funding the purchase of up to 2,000 homes for eligible buyers.
  • 950 Cost Rental homes – of which 750 will be delivered by Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and 200 homes will be delivered directly by local authorities.
  • €250m for lending under the Local Authority Home Loan Scheme.
  • A new vacant property tax at a rate triple the LPT.

 

Healthcare 

  • Extend GP visit cards
  • Abolish all inpatient hospital charges for adults from 1st April 2023
  • An additional €72.8m funding for mental health, bringing investment to €1.2bn. This will see increase in counselling and psychology training places, increases in accommodation and continue focus on reducing waiting lists for CAMHS and Child Psychology services.
  • An additional €180m funding for older people, bringing investment to over €2.4bn. This will see increase in home help hours for dementia care, fair deal scheme, healthy age friendly homes and meals on wheels.
  • An additional €242 bn in Disability funding bringing total budget to €2.4bn. This will address backlogs in Disability services in relation to Assessment of Need and build long-term capacity for Specialist Disability Services and other Disability iniciatives. This funding shows our commitment to supporting community and voluntary organisations.
  • Free contraception scheme extended to women aged 16-30.
  • Zero VAT on period products and Hormone Replacement Therapies.

 

Education 

  • Free School Books Scheme for primary pupils.
  • €1,000 reduction in the student contribution fee.
  • A once-off double monthly payment of the student SUSI grant.
  • The income limit to qualify for a 50% reduction in contribution fees under SUSI will be increased to €62,000.
  • All SUSI maintenance grants will increase by 10-14% in September 2023.
  • Once-off €1,000 increase in Postgraduate grant.
  • Once-off €250 payment for Apprentices.
  • Once-off €500 payment for PHD researchers.

 

Information source: Budget 2023

For additional information on any of the energy supports available to business, please contact our expert team.