Hundreds of thousands of people receiving the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) could be paying the Government back in taxes for four years.
Ireland's Revenue Office says those in receipt of the PUP, as well as the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme, will have to pay income tax and Universal Social Charges (USC) on the money they're currently getting off the Government.
With hundreds of thousands out of work due to Covid-19, the number of people claiming the PUP reached 333,000 this week.
And a spokesperson for the Revenue Office confirmed today that the Government will be slapping them with a tax bill – though it will be staggered over four years in order to "minimise any hardship".
At the end of 2020, those who've claimed pandemic-related social welfare payments will get an end-of-year statement that tells them how much they owe in income tax.
They will have the opportunity to fully or partially repay the amount they owe, or else Revenue will collect back – in the form of reduced tax credits – over four years.
Those who don't cough up the taxes they owe will start to see reductions in their tax credits from January 2022 onwards, the spokesperson told the Irish Mirror.
The Department of Social Protection this week reported a 34,000 increase in the number of people claiming the PUP.
The Government processed over €95 million in payments on Tuesday, compared to €85.6 million last week.
Applications for the scheme have been extended until the end of the year, as people working in a number of sectors continue to feel the pinch amid ongoing Level Five restrictions.
Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphries said the Government had predicted an increase in the number of people claiming the payment.
“The fall in the number of cases of Covid-19 in recent days is encouraging," she said, adding: "This is a credit to the Irish people and the sacrifices they are making in responding to the public health advice."
