Ireland
Ireland: 5 company types, its taxes, banking and business environment, and what it is known for.
Forming a company
Company types in Ireland
The 5 forms a founder can choose here, each with its own figures. Open one for its sources.
Forming and closing a LTD
The headline facts; the steps, requirements and their sources are on its own page.
- Formation fee
- EUR 50
- Days to incorporate
- 10
- Formed remotely
- Yes
- Closing route
- Voluntary strike-off, Companies Act 2014 s.731
What it is known for
Where Ireland is in the world’s top 10 on a measure anyone can check, the best rank first. Only the top is shown; a low rank is never stated.
- World’s1stWorld-leading exports Blood products, vaccines and immunologicalsHuman blood; animal blood prepared for therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic uses; antisera, other blood fractions and immunological products, whether or not modified or obtained by means of biotechnological processes; vaccines, toxins, cultures of micro-organisms (excluding yeasts) and similar products; cell cultures, whether or not modifiedUS$50.6 bn · 15.3% of world exports of 202 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s1stWorld-leading exports Hormones and their derivativesHormones, prostaglandins, thromboxanes and leukotrienes, natural or reproduced by synthesis; derivatives and structural analogues thereof, including chain modified polypeptides, used primarily as hormonesUS$18.4 bn · 47.1% of world exports of 101 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s1stDigital services ICT service exportsUS$358.8 bn of 133 economies · 2025 World Bank, World Development Indicators See the top 10
- World’s3rdWorld-leading exports Nitrogen heterocyclic compoundsHeterocyclic compounds with nitrogen hetero-atom(s) onlyUS$13.5 bn · 17.2% of world exports of 144 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s8thResearch and technology High-technology exportsUS$117.6 bn of 123 economies · 2024 World Bank, World Development Indicators See the top 10
A rank is among everything the source reports for that year, so it moves when the source adds or drops economies. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. Nothing here is a recommendation.
Doing business here
Business accounts
Providers whose own published list of countries names Ireland. A listing means a company formed here may apply, not that it will be accepted.
AirwallexAirwallex business accountlist read 8 Oct 2026
bunqbunq Business accountlist read 8 Oct 2026PayseraPaysera business accountlist read 8 Oct 2026
- RevolutRevolut Business accountlist read 8 Oct 2026
StripeStripe account (payments)list read 8 Oct 2026
Checked, not listing Ireland: Brex, Mercury, Qonto.
Publish no country list: N26 Business, Payoneer, PayPal Business, Wise Business. They may still serve it; ask them.
Payments and payroll
Services for taking payments, paying people and moving money, as each states where a business based in Ireland may open an account.
- StripeOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
WiseOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
DeelOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026- RevolutOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
AdyenOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026SquareOpen to a business based herelist read 18 Aug 2026
For individuals only here: PayPal.
EU listings
Two lists a bank checks when it opens an account for a company or its owner.
- EU high-risk third countries (AML)
- Not listed
- EU non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes
- Not listedOfficial EUR-Lex, 52026XG01465, Annex I as of 2026-02-17
Official sites
The authorities’ own sites for Ireland: where to register, file and check.
- Business registerCompanies Registration Office (CRO)cro.ie
Tax authorityRevenue Commissioners (Irish Tax and Customs)revenue.ie
- Business registerCompanies Registration Office (CRO)cro.ie
Blocs and agreements
The trade arrangements Ireland belongs to, as each arrangement’s own texts state them: since when, and what each covers. What a membership means for a business is for you to judge.
- European Union: internal market and customs union
- Single market · since 1973
Covers goods, services, establishment, capital, movement of people, a common external tariff.
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EU Member State since 1973, Euro area member since 1999 and more about Ireland’s participation in the EU.
- European Union: VAT territory
- Inside it
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‘Community’ and ‘territory of the Community’ mean the territories of the Member States as defined in point (2);
- Euro area
- Monetary union · since 1999
Covers a common currency.
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EU Member State since 1973, Euro area member since 1999 and more about Ireland’s participation in the EU.
- European Economic Area
- Single market · since 1 January 1994
Covers goods, movement of people, services, establishment, capital.
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which now covers the EU and its 27 Member States, and three of the four EFTA members: Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Regional and customs arrangements only, 36 of them; bilateral trade agreements are not yet in our records.
Tax
Company tax
Tax, and what the company owes the registry each year.
- Corporate income tax
- 12.5%Official OECD Corporate Tax Statistics (combined CIT) as of 2026
- Distributions
- Profit taxed when earned: 12.5% trading, 25% passive/excepted tradesOfficial Revenue Commissioners
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There are two rates of Corporation Tax (CT): 12.5% for trading income 25% for
- Audit
- 2 of: turnover EUR 15m, balance sheet total EUR 7.5m, average 50 employeesOfficial Law Reform Commission (revised acts of the Oireachtas)
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(a) the amount of turnover of the company does not exceed F127 [ €15 million ] ; (b) the balance sheet total of the company does not exceed F127 [ €7.5 million ] ; (c) the average number of employees does not exceed 50.
- Small-company relief
- Relief if CT due is EUR 40,000 or less; partial relief to EUR 60,000 (new start-up companies only)Official Revenue Commissioners
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You may be entitled to relief if your total CT due is €40,000 or less in a tax year. If your CT due is between €40,000 and €60,000, you may be entitled to partial relief.
- Annual obligations
- CT1 return and payment nine months after end of accounting period (by the 23rd of the ninth month)Official Revenue Commissioners
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A company must file its return, and pay any tax due, nine months after the end of the accounting period.
- Annual registry fee
- EUR 20 per annual return (B1)Official Companies Registration Office (Ireland)
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The associated fee for filing an annual return is €20.
VAT
The tax on what the company sells in Ireland, and when it must register, as the tax authority states it.
- Standard rate
- 23%Official European Commission, Taxes in Europe Database situation on 2026-07-01
- Other rates
- 13.5% Hotel lettings, admissions to cinemas, theatres, museums and exhibitions, amusement services, certain printed matter, certain fuels, building, repair, cleaning and maintenance services
- 9% Periodicals, e-periodicals, sport facilities, electricity and gas
- 4.8% Livestock in general, including horses intended for food or agricultural production
- 0% Exports, intra-Community supplies to VAT-registered EU businesses, certain food and drink, books and e-books, children's clothing and footwear, and solar panels on private dwellings and recognised schools
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Effective from Standard rate (%) Reduced rate (%) Second reduced rate (%) Livestock rate (%) Flat-rate addition (%) 1 January 2025 23 13.5 9 4.8 5.1
- Registration threshold
- EUR 42,500
services only; €85,000 for goods, and for goods-and-services where 90% or more of turnover is from goods; 12 months
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Value-Added Tax (VAT) registration is obligatory when your annual turnover exceeds the VAT thresholds. If your turnover is less than a threshold limit, you may elect to register for VAT.
- Voluntary registration
- Yes
A business below the threshold, and farmers and fishers, may elect to register for VAT; an election can only take effect from a current date, not retrospectively.
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Value-Added Tax (VAT) registration is obligatory when your annual turnover exceeds the VAT thresholds. If your turnover is less than a threshold limit, you may elect to register for VAT.
- A foreign company
- Registers from its first taxable supply
A person not established in the State must register and account for Irish VAT on taxable supplies to taxable customers irrespective of turnover, unless the EU VAT SME Scheme applies. Revenue's guidance names no tax representative requirement.
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A person, while not established in the State, needs to register and account for VAT if that person supplies
- Returns filed
- Depends on the business
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The taxable period is a two-month period (bi-monthly) commencing on the first day of January, March, May, July, September and November.
- Tax authority
- Registration page read 2026-10-22
Tax calendar
When the main returns and payments fall due in Ireland, tax year 2025, as the tax authority states it.
- Corporate tax return
- 9 months after the end of the accounting period · each year
a company must file its return nine months after the end of the accounting period; where the accounting period ends on or after the 21st day of a month, the return is to be filed by the 21st day of the ninth month after the end of the accounting period (23rd for companies that file and pay through ROS). For an accounting period ended 31 December 2025 the return is due by 21 September 2026 (23 September 2026 on ROS).
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A company must file its return, and pay any tax due, nine months after the end of the accounting period
- Corporate tax, final payment
- 9 months after the end of the accounting period · each year
the balance of tax due is paid by the return filing date; a company must make the payment on or before the 23rd of the ninth month (21st of the month if it does not pay and file electronically).
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The company must make this payment on, or before, the 23rd of the ninth month
- Corporate tax, instalments
- 30 November · each year
small companies must pay their preliminary tax in one instalment, 31 days before the end of the accounting period (for a year ending 31 December, 30 November). The rule records the calendar-year case. Large companies (CT liability above €200,000 in the previous accounting period) pay two instalments, due on the 23rd of the sixth month and the 23rd of the eleventh month of the accounting period.
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Small companies must pay their preliminary tax in one instalment if they have a CT liability of less than €200,000 in their previous accounting period. This must be paid 31 days before the end of their accounting period
- Personal income-tax return
- 31 October · each year
the tax return is filed on or before 31 October in the year following the tax year to which the return relates (Pay and File). The ROS filing and payment deadline for the 2025 return was extended to Wednesday 18 November 2026.
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You must file your tax return on, or before, 31 October in the year following the tax year to which the return relates
- Personal income tax, final payment
- 31 October · each year
under Pay and File, by 31 October in a tax year the taxpayer must pay the preliminary tax for that year, file the return for the previous year and pay any balance of tax due for the previous year. Where adequate preliminary tax has not been paid, the liability falls due on 31 October in the tax year instead.
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By 31 October in a tax year, you must: pay your preliminary tax for that year file your self-assessment tax return for the previous tax year and pay any balance of tax due for the previous year
- Personal income tax, instalments
- 31 October · each year
preliminary tax is the estimate of Income Tax, PRSI and USC expected for a tax year and must be paid by 31 October of the tax year in question. The amount must be at least the lowest of 90% of the tax due for that year, 100% of the tax due for the immediately previous year, or 105% of the tax due for the pre-preceding year where paid by direct debit.
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You must pay this by 31 October of the tax year in question
- VAT return
- Day 19 of the following month · every two months
VAT must be filed and paid by the 19th day of the month following the end of each taxable period, and the standard taxable period is a two-month (bi-monthly) period, so the Jan-Feb return is due 19 March. The rule is measured from the end of the taxable period; for ROS filers the filing time limit is extended to the 23rd day of the month.
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You must file and pay your Value-Added Tax (VAT) by the 19th day of the month following the end of each taxable period
- Payroll withholding
- Day 14 of the following month · each month
the monthly employer return and payment is due on the 14th day of the month following the month covered (the payment date is extended to the 23rd for ROS users who file and pay online). Quarterly remitters pay on the 14th of the month following the end of the quarter.
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14 PAYE/Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI)/Universal Social Charge (USC)/Local Property Tax (LPT): Monthly return and payment for September 2026 (payment date is extended to 23rd for ROS users who file and pay online)
Running the company
Running a company here
What it takes to keep a company in good standing in Ireland: the full guide is on each form’s own page.
Running a Private Company Limited by Shares (LTD)
24 obligations for one shareholder who is the sole director, with who may do each, when, and how.
- The director can do
- 22 of its 24 obligations
personally, through the authorities’ own services.
- A professional the law requires
- A company secretary Appoint and keep a company secretary
- A licensed auditor — if Audit is required unless the company qualifies as small Have the financial statements audited unless the small-company exemption applies
- Not required here
- Renewal of a general business or trade licence · Employers' liability insurance · Registration or annual fee with the Data Protection Commission
Not yet covered: DAC, PLC, General Partnership, Limited Partnership. Each form has its own requirements.
Economy and trade
What it exports
Goods Ireland exported, by product, as a share of its goods exports each year. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. A share describes Ireland’s own trade; it does not compare places.
| Product (HS heading) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Value, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human blood; animal blood prepared for therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic uses; antisera, other blood fractions and immunological products, whether or not modified or obtained by means of biotechnological processes; vaccines, toxins, cultures of micro-organisms (excluding yeasts) and similar products; cell cultures, whether or not modified HS 3002 | 19.4% | 20.5% | 20.7% | US$50.6 bn |
| Medicaments (excluding goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, put up in measured doses (including those in the form of transdermal administration systems) or in forms or packings for retail sale HS 3004 | 14.3% | 14.9% | 13.1% | US$32.1 bn |
| Hormones, prostaglandins, thromboxanes and leukotrienes, natural or reproduced by synthesis; derivatives and structural analogues thereof, including chain modified polypeptides, used primarily as hormones HS 2937 | 3.3% | 5.2% | 7.5% | US$18.4 bn |
| Heterocyclic compounds with nitrogen hetero-atom(s) only HS 2933 | 9.2% | 8.6% | 5.5% | US$13.5 bn |
| Electronic integrated circuits HS 8542 | 7.2% | 4.9% | 5.3% | US$13 bn |
| Mixtures of odoriferous substances and mixtures (including alcoholic solutions) with a basis of one or more of these substances, of a kind used as raw materials in industry; other preparations based on odoriferous substances, of a kind used for the manufacture of beverages HS 3302 | 4.3% | 4.4% | 5.0% | US$12.2 bn |
| Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electromedical apparatus and sight-testing instruments HS 9018 | 3.4% | 4.1% | 4.3% | US$10.5 bn |
| Orthopaedic appliances, including crutches, surgical belts and trusses; splints and other fracture appliances; artificial parts of the body; hearing aids and other appliances which are worn or carried, or implanted in the body, to compensate for a defect or disability HS 9021 | 3.1% | 3.3% | 3.6% | US$8.8 bn |
| Other aircraft (for example, helicopters, aeroplanes), except unmanned aircraft of heading 8806; spacecraft (including satellites) and suborbital and spacecraft launch vehicles HS 8802 | 1.4% | 2.0% | 2.9% | US$7.1 bn |
| Nucleic acids and their salts, whether or not chemically defined; other heterocyclic compounds HS 2934 | 3.9% | 1.4% | 2.3% | US$5.7 bn |
Total goods exports, 2024: US$244.9 bn. The ten largest headings are shown.