Unemployed Tax Refund

Don’t miss out on claiming your Unemployment Repayment!

Did you know – you can claim a refund today for tax you have paid this year? No need to wait until next year to submit your claim!

Who is entitled to claim an
Unemployment Repayment?

You can claim an unemployed tax refund if you are:

1. Unemployed

And have paid tax or USC this year

2. Leaving Ireland

And will not work again this year

3. Leaving Ireland

And will not return to Ireland next year

 

 

Lets Get Started

Unemployment Repayment

This section explains what happens with your tax if you are out of work and when you can claim an unemployed tax refund.

Unemployment Repayment

You can get a refund of tax you have already paid if you were employed and find yourself unemployed. You may also get a tax refund if you are out of work due to illness.

Another way to get tax back is through tax relief on services or products that you have bought. Some of the cost of certain services and products can be recouped from the tax you have already paid to Revenue, for example, tax relief for employing a carer and tax relief for third level education fees. The amount of relief you get depends on the amount of tax you have paid.

This article explains how to get a tax refund if you have worked and are now unemployed, getting Illness Benefit or short-term Occupational Injury Benefit.

 

Why would I get an unemployed tax refund?

There are a number of reasons why you may now be liable to pay less tax than previously thought and due an unemployed tax refund. Your tax liability may be reduced because you are on unpaid sick leave or have become unemployed.

For PAYE workers your tax liability is spread out evenly over the year. To ensure that this is achieved, your tax liability is normally calculated on a cumulative basis. Any tax credits and standard rate cut-off point, which is not used in a pay period, is carried forward to the next pay period within that tax year.

This means that when an employer calculates your tax liability, they actually calculate the total tax due from 1st January to the date which your most recent wages are paid. This means if your income is reduced, for example, by sickness or unemployment, you will have unused tax credits and may be due a tax refund.

You may also get a refund if your tax liability has been incorrectly calculated by your employer and you have overpaid tax.

A tax refund may also be paid if you have purchased goods or services for which you can claim tax relief.

Rules

If you are unemployed or out of work sick

If tax has been deducted from your pay since 1st January last and you are now unemployed, you may be entitled to a tax rebate. If you have not paid any tax, you will not be due a refund.

Jobseeker’s Benefit (JB), Illness Benefit (IB) and payments under the Occupational Injury Benefit (OIB) Scheme (including Injury Benefit, Disablement Benefit and Incapacity Supplement) are all taxable sources of income. However, the first €13 per week of Jobseeker’s Benefit is not taxable. Any Increase for a Qualified Child paid with Illness Benefit or a payment under the OIB scheme is not taxable.

If you are getting Jobseeker’s Benefit, Illness Benefit, or a payment under the Occupational Injury Benefit Scheme and make a claim for a tax refund, the taxable proportion of your JB, IB or OIB payment and your wages are added together to determine if you are entitled to a refund.

 

When can I claim & how much will my refund be?

After leaving your job, your employer will provide Revenue with your pay and tax details and your leaving date.

A claim for an unemployment repayment can be made:

  • immediately if emergency tax was applied in your last employment
  • immediately if you are leaving Ireland permanently
  • four weeks after becoming unemployed if you are not receiving any other taxable income
  • eight weeks after becoming unemployed if you are receiving other taxable income such as Jobseekers Benefit.

 

The amount of your unemployed tax refund depends on:

  • The length of time you have been unemployed
  • The amount of income you have earned
  • The amount of tax you have paid
  • The amount of tax credits you have used
  • The amount of your weekly social welfare payment

Leaving Ireland Tax Refund

This section explains what happens with your tax if you leave Ireland. This may apply to you if you are:

– an individual going to work or live abroad on a long term or permanent basis.

– an Irish resident going abroad to work on a temporary basis

Leaving Ireland Tax Refund

If you are leaving Ireland permanently

You might be going to live abroad permanently, becoming non-resident for Irish tax purposes.

If you are non-resident you must pay Irish tax on any Irish sourced income.

If you are working abroad for the Irish Government, you must pay Irish tax on that income. This applies to you regardless of your tax residence status or where the duties of your office or employment are carried out. Such positions may include those held by civil servants, Gardaí and members of the Defence Forces working abroad.

Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Exclusion Order

If you are working abroad for an Irish employer, you may be exempt from Irish tax. See What is a PAYE Exclusion Order? to check if you are eligible.

 

Are you entitled to a tax rebate?

If you worked in Ireland for part of the year and you have now gone to live abroad, you may be due a ‘leaving Ireland tax refund’.

If you are moving abroad, you will be resident in Ireland in the year of departure and non-resident the next year. You can claim ‘split-year treatment’ in the year of departure.

This means that you continue to be treated as resident up to the date of departure. All your employment income up to that date is taxed in the normal way. Your employment income from the date of departure is ignored for Irish tax purposes. Generally, full tax credits are allowable on a ‘cumulative basis’. This means that you receive a full year of tax credits even though you have been resident here for only part of the year, resulting in a tax rebate being due.

Split-year treatment applies to employment income only.

 

If you are going abroad to work

You may be going abroad to work but remaining tax resident in Ireland. If so, you must pay Irish tax on your total worldwide income.

If you are tax resident in Ireland you are entitled to full tax credits.

You may also be able to claim:

What happens if your income is also taxed abroad?

If you are Irish resident and working abroad, you may have to pay tax in that country also. If you do, you may be entitled to relief under a Double Taxation Agreement. The tax due on income in one country will allow for the tax you have already paid on that income in the other country.

In certain circumstances you can claim a credit for the foreign tax deducted on employment income during the same tax year. See the Double Deduction manual for more information.

You may be working in a country where there is no Double Taxation Agreement with Ireland. If so, you must pay Irish tax on your foreign income after you have paid the foreign tax.

How do I claim an Unemployment Repayment or a Leaving Ireland Tax Refund?

To claim an unemployed tax refund or a leaving Ireland tax refund, just complete the application form at the top of this page. The form will provide us with the information needed to file your tax returns and ensure you get your maximum tax rebate.

Need any assistance?

Whether you have a question about how our service works or just a general tax query, our team is ready to assist you.

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