As an employee your tax is taken from your pay by your employer.
This is known as PAYE or Pay As You Earn.PAYE ensures that the yearly amount of tax that you have to pay
is collected evenly throughout the year on each payday.
How does your employer know how much tax to collect?
At the start of each year, Revenue sends your employer a notice that gives the necessary details needed to work out your correct tax. This notice includes any changes to tax that were made in the most recent Budget.
The details in the notice are based on the information about your personal circumstances that you gave to Revenue. When there is a change in your personal circumstances that affects the tax you pay - for example, if you get married, you need to tell Revenue. Revenue will than send your employer a new notice to calculate the new amount of tax you should be paying. A separate more detailed notice is send to you.
The Universal Social Charge (USC)
The Universal Social Charge (USC) comes into effect on 1 January 2011 and replaces the Health Levy (paid as part of your PRSI deductions) and Income Levy which are abolished from that date. The USC is a tax payable on gross income, including benefits from your employer, but before deducting your pension contributions. Your employer will deduct the USC from your earnings on a pay period by pay period basis.
