Count.ie — Irish Financial Guides

Budget 2027 Tax Calculator & Changes: Complete PAYE Guide

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT

Budget 2027 changes can affect take-home pay, but a Budget announcement is not a complete payroll specification. This guide explains the announced PAYE changes and how to compare a supported scenario without treating every proposal as an operative rule. Check Revenue guidance, commencement dates and your personal eligibility before relying on a figure.

What Budget 2027 announces for PAYE

The published tax policy document announces a €2,500 increase in the standard-rate Income Tax band. The single-person band moves from €44,000 to €46,500; the qualifying single-person child-carer band moves from €48,000 to €50,500; and the one-income married or civil-partner band moves from €53,000 to €55,500. Income Tax rates remain 20% and 40% in the announced profile.

Personal, Employee and Earned Income credits are announced to increase from €2,000 to €2,125 each. They are not all interchangeable or automatically available to one person. For a two-income couple, the additional standard-rate band depends on the lower earner’s income and the relevant limit; do not simply apply a combined maximum to every household.

How to compare your take-home pay

Start with annual gross pay, the correct assessment type and the people earning that income.
Select 2026 first, then the announced Budget 2027 profile while keeping comparable inputs.
Check pension deductions, credits, USC, PRSI and supported MyFutureFund assumptions separately.
Compare net pay and the individual deduction lines, not only the Income Tax total.

A pay rise and a tax change are different comparisons. Keep gross pay fixed when measuring the announced tax effect; use a separate scenario for any pay rise. Monthly results are model estimates rather than a promise that every payslip will be identical.

The unresolved USC boundary

The announced 2% USC ceiling increases to €30,300, but the official upper-band figures are inconsistent. Count.ie therefore rejects the announced 2027 salary profile above €70,044 per earner. That restriction is intentional. Do not fill the gap with an assumed rate, reuse a rejected result or extrapolate from the last supported salary.

PRSI can depend on the person’s class and the period being modelled. Pension tax relief and MyFutureFund are also not the same deduction mechanism. Use the model’s stated scope for those items; the presence of a Budget-year switch does not verify every possible employment arrangement.

A simple band-change example

If the entire additional €2,500 standard-rate band is used, moving that income from 40% to 20% reduces Income Tax by €500: €2,500 × (40% − 20%). This is a band-only illustration. It excludes credit changes, USC, PRSI and pension effects, and is not a personalised take-home-pay prediction.

What to check before using an estimate

Keep the year, gross-pay period, assessment status and deductions with any saved comparison. Verify announced measures against current Revenue guidance before using them for payroll, lending or a tax return. Calculations are estimates, not formal financial advice; ask Revenue or a qualified accountant about a case outside the published model scope.

Capital Gains Tax Drops to 31%: Complete Guide

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT

Revenue states that the standard Capital Gains Tax rate changed to 31% for most gains on disposals from 7 October 2026. The rate reduction does not change every asset regime, and it does not apply retrospectively to earlier disposals. Establish the disposal date and asset treatment before multiplying a gain by the headline rate.

When 31% applies—and when it does not

For most qualifying gains, the relevant standard rate is 31% from 7 October 2026. Earlier disposals keep the rate applicable at the time. Revenue separately lists development land at 33%, as well as other special rates and regimes. Fund investments, foreign products and venture-capital arrangements should not be assumed to follow an ordinary share-disposal calculation.

The legally relevant disposal date may not be the day the sale proceeds reach your bank account. Where timing or contract conditions are unclear, verify the appropriate date before choosing a rate. The rate table alone does not decide whether a particular asset or relief qualifies.

Work out the gain rather than taxing the sale price

Begin with proceeds or the required market value. Subtract the allowable acquisition cost, eligible enhancement expenditure and qualifying acquisition or disposal costs. Review the year’s gains and allowable losses, then apply eligible exemptions and reliefs. Gifts, inherited assets and historic acquisitions can require different valuation or relief treatment.

An individual’s annual personal exemption is €1,270. It is an exemption against eligible gains, not a deduction from the tax already calculated. The treatment of losses and reliefs matters; do not subtract an allowance repeatedly for each sale without checking the annual position.

A worked example at the new rate

Assume an individual makes an ordinary qualifying disposal after the rate change: proceeds of €25,000, an allowable acquisition cost of €14,000, and allowable transaction costs of €500. With no other gains, losses or reliefs, the chargeable gain is €10,500. Deducting the €1,270 personal exemption gives a taxable gain of €9,230.

At 31%, the estimated CGT is €9,230 × 0.31 = €2,861.30. At 33%, the same already-taxable gain would produce €3,045.90. The €184.60 difference illustrates the rate change only; it does not establish that a real transaction qualifies for the new rate or the exemption.

Payment and filing are separate tasks

Revenue distinguishes paying CGT from filing the return. Do not assume that filing a return pays the liability, or that a nil liability automatically removes the reporting obligation. Use Revenue’s current payment and filing instructions for the disposal year and period. Keep the acquisition records, valuations, costs, loss calculations and evidence of payments together.

Choose the appropriate calculator

Use the embedded CGT tool with the correct disposal date and supported asset treatment. It is not a universal calculator for every investment product. The separate investment-account comparison can help explore different regimes, but a comparison does not determine the legal treatment of your holding.

Review the result before acting

A calculator cannot establish entitlement to a specialist relief, settle a valuation dispute or verify all reporting duties. Check the original Revenue guidance and obtain qualified advice for unusual transactions, development land, foreign assets or mixed tax regimes. The displayed figures are estimates and not formal financial advice.

Help to Buy Scheme 2027: How to Get up to €35k Deposit Relief

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT

Revenue confirms further enhanced Help to Buy relief of up to €35,000 for qualifying purchase contracts signed, or first mortgage drawdowns for self-builds, from 7 October 2026 through 31 December 2029. It can therefore be relevant to qualifying 2027 plans, but it is not a 2027-only change and €35,000 is not guaranteed.

Start with the qualifying date

The applicable limit depends on the qualifying contract date for a purchase or first mortgage drawdown for a self-build—not simply the year you read this guide. Enhanced qualifying dates through 6 October 2026 retain the €30,000 cap. Further enhanced qualifying dates from 7 October 2026 use the €35,000 ceiling, subject to the rest of the scheme.

Check Revenue’s eligibility conditions for the buyers, the property, the mortgage and the purchase or self-build route. A first-time-buyer label by itself does not establish scheme eligibility. Confirm the relevant contractor and application requirements before assuming the relief is part of an available deposit.

Calculate the lowest of three limits

€35,000 under the further enhanced scheme.
10% of the qualifying new-home purchase value, or approved property valuation for a self-build.
Qualifying Income Tax and DIRT paid in the four years before the application.

The lowest of those three amounts limits the potential refund. USC and PRSI do not count towards the tax-paid amount. The cap applies per qualifying property, regardless of the number of buyers; it is not €35,000 for each applicant.

A realistic example below the headline maximum

Suppose a qualifying home costs €330,000 and the buyers have €40,000 in qualifying tax paid. The three limits are €35,000, €33,000 and €40,000. The lowest is €33,000, so the estimated relief is €33,000 if every other scheme condition is satisfied.

If the qualifying tax-paid amount were instead €18,000, that amount would limit the estimate to €18,000. A higher advertised cap cannot refund taxes that do not qualify or were not paid. Keep this distinction clear when planning the cash deposit and other purchase costs.

Prepare before making an application

Review Revenue’s first-time-buyer and qualifying-property conditions for every relevant applicant.
Gather the tax records and details required for the applicable application years.
Check the contract or self-build drawdown date and the scheme’s mortgage conditions.
Follow Revenue’s application and claim steps; verify the approved amount rather than relying on an online estimate.

Revenue states that a qualifying purchase refund is paid to the qualifying contractor. For a qualifying self-build it is paid to an account held with the mortgage provider. It is not generally a cash payment you can spend on unrelated bills.

What the embedded widget supports

The current Help to Buy widget supports qualifying dates within 2026, including the €35,000 rule from 7 October. It does not validate 2027 claim dates. Use the supported example to understand the three limits, then confirm a planned 2027 application with current Revenue guidance. The separate mortgage calculator estimates repayments and borrowing limits, not HTB eligibility.

Keep relief separate from the total buying budget

Even a confirmed refund does not cover every buying cost or replace a lender’s assessment. Budget separately for your own funds, legal and transaction costs, moving costs and ongoing repayments. Outputs are estimates, not formal financial advice; confirm final figures and eligibility with Revenue or a qualified adviser.

Rent Tax Credit 2027: Announced €1,150 Limit & How Claims Work

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT

Budget 2027 announces a higher Rent Tax Credit cap, but that does not mean a tenant can claim the new amount for rent paid in 2026. The announced individual maximum is €1,150 for 2027 and 2028, with €2,300 for jointly assessed couples. Revenue’s current overview still lists €1,000 and €2,000. Treat the future increase as an announcement until the applicable claim-year guidance confirms it.

Understand the credit before the headline amount

The Rent Tax Credit reduces Income Tax due. It is not a rent subsidy or a guaranteed payment to every tenant, and it does not offset USC or PRSI. The amount you can use depends on qualifying rent, the tenancy conditions and your available Income Tax liability. A maximum cap is not an entitlement to that amount.

Revenue excludes payments for additional services such as utilities, board and laundry from qualifying rent. Separate those charges from the rent figure rather than submitting a single total for all housing costs. A claim may concern a principal private residence or another qualifying arrangement, but the conditions differ and must be checked.

Which amount belongs to which tax year?

For a 2026 claim, use the current confirmed Revenue rules, not the announced €1,150 cap.
For 2027 and 2028 planning, identify the €1,150 individual and €2,300 joint caps as announced measures.
Check the claim-year guidance again when Revenue opens the relevant claim process.
Do not multiply a personal annual cap because you rented more than one property.

The maximum increase is €150 for an individual who can use the full announced credit, or €300 for a jointly assessed couple at the joint maximum. Someone with insufficient Income Tax liability may benefit by less, or not at all.

Prepare your claim records

Keep the amounts and dates of rent payments and the address of the property.
Record the tenancy and landlord details requested by Revenue, including registration details where required.
Check qualifying use of the property, relationships with the landlord, and any conditions for a child attending an approved course.
Retain supporting records and review every declaration before submitting a claim.

PAYE taxpayers use Revenue’s myAccount service for supported claims. Follow the current How to claim instructions for an in-year claim or the relevant Income Tax Return. Other taxpayers should follow their applicable Revenue return process. This guide does not provide a live filing service or submit information to Revenue.

Use the calculator without overstating its scope

The embedded calculator estimates supported current-year rules. It does not implement the announced €1,150 individual 2027 cap. You can use it to understand the interaction between qualifying rent, Income Tax and the confirmed cap, but its result is not confirmation of a future claim.

Before you submit

Recheck the current Revenue guidance for your tax year and circumstances. Do not claim a higher amount simply because it appears in a Budget headline or this guide’s planning discussion. An estimate is not tax advice; ask Revenue or a qualified accountant when eligibility or your tax liability is uncertain.