In the past there was no legal right for employees to be paid while they were on sick leave from work, but this changed in 2022.  The Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Employment signed and published the regulations which govern Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) on 29th November 2022.

Statutory Sick Pay will come into operation for all employers from 1st January 2023.

From 1 January 2023, workers will have a right to:

• Paid sick leave for up to 3 sick days per year. This will increase to 5 days in 2024, 7 days in 2025 and 10 days in 2026.
• A rate of payment for statutory sick leave of 70% of normal wages to be paid by employers (up to a maximum €110 per day).
• Take a complaint to the WRC where they are not provided with a company sick pay scheme

In order to be eligible for sick leave under the new scheme an employee must have worked 13 weeks of continuous service and produce a medical certificate in respect of each day of statutory sick leave requested.

There are 3 methods by which the daily amount of SSP that an employee is entitled to can be calculated;

• For Employees on a fixed salary, or a fixed number of hours at a fixed rate, the employee is entitled to a payment of 70% of their normal daily rate, up to a maximum of €110 per day. This daily rate includes any fixed salary, allowance or bonus that does not vary according to the work normally carried out, but excludes any pay for overtime or commission.

• For Employees on a fixed hourly rate, but a variable number of hours per week, the employee is entitled to be paid for the hours that they would have worked on the day they were sick, but at a rate that is 70% of their normal rates subject to a maximum payment of €110 per day. Again this applies to all normal rates, allowances or bonuses but excludes overtime and commission.

• For any employees not covered by either of the above methods, they will be entitled to be paid for the number of hours which they would have worked on the sick day, but at a rate which is calculated as 70% of their average rate of pay over the previous 13 weeks, subject to a maximum of €110 per day. Again this applies to all normal rates, allowances or bonuses but excludes overtime and commission.

Most payroll packages will have tools to help you calculate employees entitlement to SSP and track any such payments made to your employees.

A Christmas bonus can put a smile on every employee’s face and can be the perfect way to say “thank you” for the hard work done during a challenging year!

The small benefit exemption means that employers can give employees some vouchers or other non-cash benefits each year without paying tax on them.

As announced on Budget Day, from 1 January 2022, you can give up to 2 benefits each year, up to a total value of €1,000. If more benefits are given in a year, only the first 2 benefits qualify.

Qualifying Criteria

The voucher or tangible non-cash benefit must meet all of the following conditions in order to be a qualifying incentive: 

• the voucher or benefit cannot be part of any salary sacrifice arrangement between the employee and employer, 
• the voucher or benefit can only be used to purchase goods or services and cannot be exchanged in part or in full for cash, 
• the voucher or benefit cannot exceed €500 in value, and 
• only one voucher or benefit may be given in any one tax year. 

Who is Eligible?

You can give this benefit to any employee of the company including directors and shareholders as long as they are on the payroll.  Part-time employees qualify also.  

Benefits for Employees: 

Employee is not liable for PAYE, PRSI and USC on value of award

Benefit for Employers: 

Employers are not liable for employer PRSI (10.75%) on value of award Single Non-Cash Awards

There is no obligation to give a benefit to employees, you may choose to give only to a select group, and you may give different amounts to different employees.  It’s entirely up to you.