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Pension question, Ireland

Can I pay voluntary PRSI contributions after leaving Ireland?

Emigrants who want to keep their Irish contribution record alive with voluntary contributions must apply within five years of the end of the last year they paid or were credited compulsory insurance. That is five years from the end of the contribution year of your last Irish contribution, and the pages read offer no route back in once it passes.

What to do next

  1. Find the last year in which you paid or were credited Irish PRSI.
  2. Count the paid weeks on your Irish record before you left.
  3. Run our free check to see whether years in another country may also count.

Check your own working life for free

Tell us where you worked. The free check shows which countries may hold a pension for you, and which can be ruled out and why. No sign in, no charge.

Run the free check

Questions people also ask

What are the conditions to be admitted?

Under the Department of Social Protection's operational guideline, to be admitted as a voluntary contributor a person must have at least 520 weeks of PRSI paid under compulsory insurance (for admittance from 6 April 2015) and must apply within 60 months (5 years) after the end of the contribution year in which they last paid compulsory insurance or were last awarded a credited contribution; in very exceptional circumstances the Minister may extend this period.

How long is there to pay each year?

Once accepted as a voluntary contributor, the full contribution for a year must be paid within twelve months of the end of that year.

Do you give advice on what to do?

No. We identify where a pension is likely held and the official route to it, and we name each source with the date we read it. We do not give financial, tax or legal advice.