Public sector pay deal will include reform and productivity measures, Jack Chambers says

What is Rich? When will i stop worrying about spending money?

Have seen answers stating being rich is enough money not to worry about money.

While I love this answer I am beginng to doubt it..

I think some people (me included and probably lots on a persoanl finance forum) are just wired to worry abou these things, worry about getting the best electricty deal, saving for the future, value for money etc.

I am relatively financially well off but still find myself worrying about these things and honestly can't see that changng. Then I know others who just don't worry at all (my wife for example) and I really think it comes down to personality and what makes the indiviual feel comfortable rather than any monetary target.

Interested to hear from others? is there a moneteray target that you think will help you switch off from worrying about "personal finance"?

In truth I’m just being nosey and also trying to see if I would be silly to get a bigger loan for a newer bigger car for expanding family.
Also to note- currently have 2 children under 4 and would like another child in the next few years.

Future combined salaries (one full time and one part time) - 6k per month
Car loan- 210
Mortgage- 900
Childcare- 900
Savings- 1000
Insurances- 400
Subscriptions- 65
Groceries- 600

ETA- Husbands pension is paid into at the end of every year in bulk from his business so not included in monthly budget.
ETA- forgot to include health insurance under insurances

Has anyone else noticed pension lodgements not showing up in the IL pension planet web app recently?

For the last couple of years our employer, employee, and AVC lodgements have hit the accounts about a week after payday. However, the last transaction I can see now is for the August payroll and that was only made in the middle of September. The September and October payments have not been booked at all yet.

I'm going to email our HR folks about it, but am curious if anyone else has noticed such delays...

Might be the wrong place to ask.

So I recently filed my RCT return for September at the start of the October..

But for some reason I stupidy filed the september period on the 23rd of October again because thats the deadline and I've had a lot on so I just did it on autopilot when checking my returns (it allowed me to do so without it showing up as a change or applying the surcharge which it now shows if I go to file it again for this period) so I just assumed I hadn't actually filed it previously.

Now looking at my revenue records on ROS I see I have 2 x RCT returns for the same period. Both Nil (0) returns since I didn't work as the primary contractor in this period. (self employed so was just me but I will be subbing lads soon so I registered for RCT to be ready)

4 days after the second filing, my 0% rate which they gave me just 1 week prior is now 20%??

I've send a message on my enquiries but has anyone seen this happen. I assume the double filing had knocked my standing.

All my VAT and income tax is up to date from last year and all returns completed on time. (IT and VAT say due but still have until next month for VAT and 18th November for my ROS IT return)

Im guessing the double return probably automatically kicks me into the 20% for something not being right?

Question: what is a pre-approved pension scheme?

This is not an AVC to a company pension but to a private PRSA so I have to select the PRSA option when claiming and this is one of the questions it asks you.

Thanks in advance.

Hi all,

Looking for a little advice on what I should do with myself as I feel like I’m at a crossroads in my life at the moment. Little bit about myself:

30M, Irish, single, living in Dublin for 10+ years.
60k salary, 60k in pension, 20k in savings, and no debt. Currently renting with lease up at the end of the year and friends moving out.
My job is secure and has good benefits but I find it frustrating and unsatisfying.
My question is

1.) How do you think I’m doing financially? I know I’m not doing bad but am I doing good or should I be doing better?

2.) What should my next move be? I could do a career change or go travelling but I don’t feel financially stable enough at the moment and if I did, I feel I would end up in the same situation except older and depleted savings.
I could take a shift role which would double my salary (approx 110k). Do this for 1/2 years, save hard, complete a spring board course(I’ve done shift before and would have plenty of spare time), and then be in a solid place with savings and in a place I could take a risk (buy a house, career change, travel).
My concern then would be shift work is mentally taxing and can interfere with social life and I would be approaching my mid 30s and feel like I would be a little old to be taking time off work to go travelling and not be in a relationship (that might bd naive thinking but I’m feeling the pressure already to be making these decisions).

Any advice is welcome and if you need more info just ask!

Thanks

To the good people of r/IrishPersonalFinance who may have been through a mortgage switch before, or who may work in the field….

I’d love to hear some of your tips for the journey I’m planning to embark on. I’m thinking along the lines of pitfalls you think someone could fall into regarding misleading advertising in the new customer lump sum payment space, hidden fees, solicitor fees eating up lump sums, particular lenders being difficult to deal with compared to others…

We bank with AIB, and went with an AIB fixed rate for the last few years, but since rates dropped, we have done nothing about it. The breakage fee equals the difference over the last few months so it might be time to get things moving.

I’m closing on a house soon. I have to pay valuation costs etc. I was going to use the account I’ve been saving in to prove i can afford the mortgage.

Eg, I save 1500 months in this account. I used it for my deposit of 10%, but can I pull 500 out to cover these costs. I’m concerned the bank will take issue with me putting in my monthly amount yesterday on payday and taking 500 out for these costs.

Or I could use my emergency fund which I also added money to on payday yesterday.

I want to put 100 per month away for my 5yo kid towards college (or whatever route they take). So looking at something over 10 years. Obviously keeping it in my own name but am I best setting up a long term savings plan with Zurich that I looked into or should I wait for the new government savings scheme next July. I'm anxious about losing out on up to a year of savings (if all goes to plan to start in July, with the governments track record I am weary of!)

I got finanacing from Humm for treatment over 2 years ago and I paid it off with Humm end of last year. However I had almost 500euro credit left that I hadn't used and didn't know how to get it back.

I contacted the business involved to get it refunded and they said I needed to contact Humm. Contacted Humm and they said my account was closed and I needed to contact the business.

Went around in circles with this for 3 weeks until I also realised the business that confirmed in an email to me about a year ago that any credit remaining could be refunded. So I sent that on to them and, low and behold, got my refund today!

Thought I'd share here in case anyone is in a similar position or didn't know it's possible to get it back.

(hope this is the right tag)

Hi guys, I'm looking for some advice from anybody that has experience with a situation like this in the past.

The situation is that I was intending on starting a software business with a business-partner in the United States. We agreed that I would invest a five-figure sum into the business in return for a certain percent shareholder ownership in the business + certain managerial control (all of the details were contained in the LLC operating agreement). He created the company (registered in his home state), and we signed all of the documents as drafted and looked over by my U.S-based lawyer, these were then submitted to the state registry and approved, and so it was all made official.

I then wired the investment to the newly-established business bank account. All was well for a few months until I suddenly logged into the bank account one day and saw that it had all funds wired out of it, I enquired with the business-partner about this and he said that it had been "hacked" (obviously complete bullshit). This went on-and-on for a while with me quizzing him over text until he said that he would reimburse me for my investment when I threatened to report it to police (he still maintained that it had been "hacked", but obviously he wouldn't agree to reimburse me had that been the case). He ended up sending me a small sum via bank transfer and then completely ghosted me. Six months later the company officially went defunct on the state register due to not filing certain registry things (the company never had any activity or trading of course).

I tried to ge the bank that the business account was with but they were not helpful at all. I did report this to local police in the U.S., and I know now that this guy is a serial fraudster who has done similar things to other people (I know I was incredibly naive, I've learned my lesson now), however that has went nowhere and I have been advised by many people that they really don't get interested unless its 6-7 figure losses and that the normal route to resolving something like this at this scale is via a civil suite. He has broken an untold number of clauses in the company's operating agreement alongside this, and obviously this would be a slam-dunk case in civil court, however I think that he is effectively insolvent and so I decided there's no point in throwing good money after bad in bringing a civil suite against him in the U.S. that's unlikely to actually recover any money, it's just not worth the hassle, and instead I'm just putting it down as the cost of a life lesson.

My question is, putting this aside, I currently owe a five-figure sum this year in capital-gains tax here in Ireland from selling some stocks that I own. Under normal circumstances, you pay CGT on your net gains, that's easily to calculate with stocks and stuff like that. However, I am wondering if I can deduct the loss of the investment into this business venture from my capital gains in order to reduce the CGT that I owe? Obviously there has been no criminal or civil court finding that I have lost this money fraudulently, but even putting that aside and simply looking at it as an investment that has failed, should I be able to use this loss in my CGT calculation?

I have the printed PDF of my bank transfer to the company's bank account, alongside the string of text messages from this fraudulant business partner maintaining that the money had been 'hacked', and the company incorporation documents and operating agreement specifying my investment and what I would get in return etc. in exact detail, and so there is no doubt that the bank transfer was an investment, not for some other purpose such as a loan or gift. It's clear that the investment has failed (all publically viewable on the state's business registry that the company has went defunct), so I think it would be very easy to prove this investment has been a failure if needed.

Does anybody have any advice on if Revenue treat something like this as a valid investment loss? If I could at least recoup some of the money from this scam by lowering my CGT bill then it would be great.

Hello all. I’m just wondering how many financial apps is too many. I have about 3 banking (AIB, Revolut and Monzo), 2 savings (Trade Republic and Raisin) and 3 investment apps (212, Revolut and Lightyear) and am looking to try and consolidate a lot of this as I know it’s overkill for myself. And can’t forget my local credit union 😅
So am just curious do people keep it simple and try to have less of a certain type of account (only one savings and one investment) and have at least two backup current accounts?
Curious as I know I need to consolidate and refine down how many I have as it’s messy, so would like to hear!
Cheers!

Hi everyone, hope you're all having a great Wednesday!

I need some solid life advice as I am really struggling with the thought of continuing a potentially financially disastrous decision. But moving home might be an everything-else-disastrous decision just to save some money which will always come back.

I'm turning 30 in January and have been renting in Sandymount for the past 2 months after moving out of my family home in Swords where I lived for the past 3 years while working.

My workplace is a 20min walk door to door from my rented room which is in a 2 bed in a gorgeous area. I have my own bathroom and there is a very small kitchen and a large living room which I never use. I also feel like I cannot use it as the person I am sharing with constantly is in it and closes the door of it which directly leads into the kitchen, which itself directly leads into my bedroom. I have really severe social anxiety so struggle taking up space and bringing this up to them.

I was out of work for 4 months this year with a severe illness (near fatal) and am still recovering, perhaps will be for another few years. It has debilitated me on every front, so putting myself so close to town versus an at times >1.5 hour commute each way (those living in or around Swords would understand how awful the traffic has been of late with the R132 etc) is massive. But I have found it very tough to actually use my fantastic location and new-found independence to my advantage and force myself out there to meet new people. Still, being able to walk into the office daily and have social interaction is great and been measurably beneficial for me.

I earn €46,192 gross, and take home just about €3,050 per month. Taking home €2,873 right now as I was overpaid while on sick leave, which will end in December. The rent is €1,100, wifi share is €17.50, and only other bill is electric. My share was €170 for the past 2 months (sep and oct) despite me not using the washing machine once, using the cooker only twice, and never stepping foot into the big living room which is constantly heated and lit as they wfh very regularly.

I anticipate a huge increase in the electricity bill in nov + dec and another step up in jan + feb. I have turned my heating on only twice for an hour each time in the past 2 months.

I toyed with the idea of moving back to swords as I can wfh half of the month, but the commute, social isolation, living with an over bearing mother who makes highly inappropriate comments on my health/ weight is devastating on my mental health. I am fighting for my life and mentally cannot afford another huge life change that could derail so much progress.

For 6 years I was fighting bulimia and it absolutely destroyed my life. I have no friends, my memory is wiped and I find the most minimally stressful and mundane task incredibly difficult. I am so proud of myself for getting to where I am, for returning to work, for starting to talk to people about things, but the mountain I have to climb is so daunting and I don't want to return to an environment that is so destabilizing even if I feel more comfortable at home in Swords just so i don't have to be forced to take up space elsewhere even though i know I really shouldn't be so fearful to do such. Even writing this makes me feel so silly as I could make Sandymount work, it just might take some more time.

I have about 50k in a savings account which is for a house deposit from an inheritance, and about 3k in my bank account. Bulimia is shockingly costly not just on the body.

I spent a crazy amount of money (ball park 20k) this summer, but I also had the happiest summer of my 20s and perhaps my life. I have a boyfriend, have met people through him, have gone to a handful of events that have really pushed me out of my comfort zone and have slowly fallen in love with the gym again.

I have a car, no debt, and moving home would entail rent of about €400 a month, and transport costs of about €200 a month.

What should I do?

Thank you so much 💚

Currently been 4 weeks since mortgage application submitted to BOI via doddl broker, they asked for documentation twice, the latest 2 weeks ago and still no updates.

Anyone else experiencing something similar?

Have a credit card the last 3 or 4 years and have made some stupid decision with it, all in all about €5,000. Called the bank today and they were lovely, getting a team to call me to discuss closing the card and transferring to a monthly fixed repayment.

Is this restructuring or refinancing? I.e. is this a new personal loan that pays the card off, then I pay the personal loan monthly?

Additionally, can I negotiate the monthly payment? I put €250 a month on it, but often times end up putting that €250 right back on it. I'm a divil for this card and I just want it gone.

Hi,

I'm looking to start a PRSA as a sole trader and am totally lost here. Wondering if anyone has any feedback on True Wealth as a broker, or any advice on where else to look? Need to set it up by 31st Oct to claim against last my 2025 tax bill.

Advice extremely welcome.

Has anyone setup a bear trust? Who did you do it with and what are the fees like?

So my company gave out vouchers recently and it got me wondering how all this actually works. Tax stuff genuinely fries my brain so bear with me lol 😂

From what I can gather, there’s the Small Benefit Exemption where your employer can give you up to €1,500 a year tax-free, spread across max 5 vouchers/gifts, but it can’t be cash. That part is easy to understand.

But then there’s Benefit-in-Kind which is where I get lost. Things like company cars, health insurance, gym memberships etc..I always assumed those were just nice tax-free perks but apparently Revenue can still hit you with BIK on them? So they’re not actually “free” free? 👀

How does your company handle it? Like do they max out the Small Benefit thing with vouchers and then everything else just gets taxed as BIK? Or is there some way around it that I’m missing?

Would love to hear how it plays out for people in practice because the Revenue site reads like it was written to confuse you on purpose lmao. 😂

Hey would love to get people's thoughts. I would like to make extra money on the side while Im working. I work a 4 cycle shift.

I suppose I'm wondering what would be something that wouldn't waste my time and what qualifications I need. I'm willing to do short course to start with if it would help me.

Id appreciate any advice or other people's experiences doing this.

I have been working two jobs for 3 months now and the tax for both of them are extremely high.

For example:

Job 1: paid weekly
Total payments €594
Total deduction €177.70
Take home €416.30

Job 2: paid monthly
Total payment €3452.64
Total deduction €1046.96
Take home €2272.36

Is there something I am doing wrong on revenue of something, please let me know?

I lived abroad in 2025, and have money saved I would like to pay into a private PRSA up to the limit for my age bracket and the cap (20% of 115k).

If I pay into it before the deadline for 2025 (31 October, or 12 November 2026), is that contribution assessed against my 2025 income for tax relief purposes? If so, what if I had no income in 2025?

​

Hello everyone,

I am new to Ireland and this is my first year here working as a doctor. I have a few basic questions about AVCs and would really appreciate some guidance:

1. How do I start an AVC?

2. I have a single occupational pension scheme from my employer - which type of AVC would be most suitable for me?

3. What is the deadline to start/contribute to AVCs to avail of tax relief for 2025/2026?

4. Which provider is generally considered best in terms of annual management charges, allocation rates and fund options (e.g., Irish Life, Zurich, Aviva, etc.)?

5. I would like to invest in equities via my AVC - how do I go about selecting funds/stocks?

6. For those working as doctors in Ireland (HSE / public hospital), is there any option for employer matching on AVCs? How does one go about claiming / negotiating this?

Any advice or personal experience, especially from other doctors, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!