What is the DIRT rate in Ireland?

33%, unchanged since 2020. It peaked at 41% between 2014 and 2016 and fell a step a year to the current rate. Your bank deducts it from interest before you see it, and for most savers that settles the tax in full.

Who is exempt from DIRT?

Savers aged 65 or over whose total income is under €18,000 (€36,000 for a couple), and people who are permanently incapacitated. The first group files Form DE1 with their bank; the second files Form DE2 with Revenue. Non-residents with a declaration are also exempt.

Do I pay DIRT on interest from Revolut, Klarna, Raisin, N26, bunq or Trade Republic?

Revolut deducts Irish DIRT for its Irish customers. The others generally pay you gross, and you declare the interest to Revenue yourself. Declared on time, EU interest is taxed at the same 33%; miss the deadline and it becomes 40%.

Do I pay USC or PRSI on deposit interest?

USC, never. PRSI, sometimes: if your total non-PAYE income passes €5,000 a year you become self-assessed and pay 4.2% PRSI on it. Under 16s and over 70s are exempt from PRSI entirely.

Is there DIRT on State Savings?

Not on the fixed-term products: Savings Bonds, Savings Certificates, Instalment Savings, the National Solidarity Bond and Prize Bond winnings are all tax free. The one exception is the book-based Deposit Account, which is liable to DIRT like any bank account.

Can first-time buyers still claim DIRT back?

The old standalone first-time-buyer DIRT refund ended in December 2017. The route today is the Help to Buy incentive, which refunds income tax and DIRT paid over the previous four tax years against a new build.

DIRT: a third of your interest, unless you know the rules

Deposit Interest Retention Tax takes 33% of the interest on almost every deposit account in Ireland, quietly, before the interest reaches you. Some savers are fully exempt and most of them never claim the exemption. Others owe it on foreign accounts and never pay it, which costs 40% instead of 33% when Revenue catches up. The calculator shows your actual number; the rules are underneath.

Gross interest, one year

€304

DIRT at 33.00%

−€100

You keep

€204

One year of interest, no compounding, 33% DIRT. Information, not tax advice.

What DIRT is

DIRT is a final withholding tax on deposit interest, deducted at source by Irish banks, credit unions and An Post. "At source" is the important part: the bank pays Revenue before it pays you, so a 3.00% rate is really a 2.01% rate in your hand. For most PAYE savers that is the end of it, with nothing to file. The rate has been 33% since 2020, down from a peak of 41% in 2014 to 2016.

Who gets it back, or never pays it

Aged 65 or over, modest income. If your total income is under €18,000 a year (€36,000 for a married couple or civil partners), you are exempt. File Form DE1 with your bank, not Revenue. One form per account. Your interest is then paid gross.
Permanently incapacitated savers are exempt via Form DE2, which goes to Revenue, which then notifies the bank.
Non-residents who complete a non-resident declaration are exempt at source.
First-time buyers: the dedicated refund scheme ended in 2017; the Help to Buy incentive is the current route and includes DIRT in what it refunds.

The non-Irish bank rule, spelled out

The best rates open to Irish savers right now are mostly at EU banks, and EU banks do not operate Irish DIRT. Klarna, the Raisin partner banks, N26, bunq and Trade Republic all pay interest gross. The tax is still owed; what changes is who does the paperwork:

Declare the interest on your Revenue return: Form 12 through myAccount for most PAYE workers, Form 11 through ROS if you are self-assessed.
Filed on time, EU deposit interest is taxed at the DIRT rate, 33%. Filed late, it becomes 40%. The deadline for 2025 income is 31 October 2026, or 18 November 2026 through ROS.
UK accounts are outside the EU rule since Brexit: higher-rate taxpayers pay their marginal rate on UK interest regardless of timely filing.
USC never applies to deposit interest. PRSI at 4.2% applies only once your total non-PAYE income passes €5,000 a year.

None of this is a reason to avoid the better rate. On €20,000 at 3.15% the paperwork is one field on a form you may already file. It is a reason to know the deadline. The full rate table and the deposit rates page mark which accounts withhold for you and which leave it to you.

Where DIRT never applies

The fixed-term State Savings products are exempt from DIRT, income tax, PRSI and USC entirely: Savings Bonds, Savings Certificates, Instalment Savings, the National Solidarity Bond, and Prize Bond winnings. That exemption is why a 2.01% State Savings rate can beat a 3.00% bank rate for a taxpaying saver. The one trap is the book-based Deposit Account, the classic post office book, which is liable to DIRT like any bank account. Credit union dividends lost their special treatment years ago and are also ordinary DIRT at 33%.

Questions Irish savers actually ask

What is the DIRT rate in Ireland?: 33%, unchanged since 2020. It peaked at 41% between 2014 and 2016 and fell a step a year to the current rate. Your bank deducts it from interest before you see it, and for most savers that settles the tax in full.
Who is exempt from DIRT?: Savers aged 65 or over whose total income is under €18,000 (€36,000 for a couple), and people who are permanently incapacitated. The first group files Form DE1 with their bank; the second files Form DE2 with Revenue. Non-residents with a declaration are also exempt.
Do I pay DIRT on interest from Revolut, Klarna, Raisin, N26, bunq or Trade Republic?: Revolut deducts Irish DIRT for its Irish customers. The others generally pay you gross, and you declare the interest to Revenue yourself. Declared on time, EU interest is taxed at the same 33%; miss the deadline and it becomes 40%.
Do I pay USC or PRSI on deposit interest?: USC, never. PRSI, sometimes: if your total non-PAYE income passes €5,000 a year you become self-assessed and pay 4.2% PRSI on it. Under 16s and over 70s are exempt from PRSI entirely.
Is there DIRT on State Savings?: Not on the fixed-term products: Savings Bonds, Savings Certificates, Instalment Savings, the National Solidarity Bond and Prize Bond winnings are all tax free. The one exception is the book-based Deposit Account, which is liable to DIRT like any bank account.
Can first-time buyers still claim DIRT back?: The old standalone first-time-buyer DIRT refund ended in December 2017. The route today is the Help to Buy incentive, which refunds income tax and DIRT paid over the previous four tax years against a new build.

Sources

Revenue: DIRT rate · Revenue manual 08-04-12: foreign deposit interest · Form DE1 · State Savings: tax treatment · Citizens Information: PRSI
All read 1 August 2026. Information, not tax advice: edge cases belong with Revenue or an accountant.