ieExplains: How much do TDs get paid?
Get A Year €79,614 Year, €113,679 Of While Tds All Get Senators Salary Paid A A Basic
The 34th Dáil is set to be the biggest ever in terms of seats, with 174 people elected to represent their constituencies after last Friday’s general election.
Ahead of the Dáil returning on December 18, the Houses of the Oireachtas has published an online guide to the salary and allowances of the 34th Dáil and the 27th Seanad.
So here’s what TDs and senators will be paid:
All TDs get a basic salary of €113,679 a year.
Scroll for results in your area
This salary is subject to tax, PRSI, USC, pension contributions etc.
They stop getting paid on the day the Dáil is dissolved but get paid 1/18th of their annual salary between the dissolution date and the general election date.
Senators, meanwhile, get paid €79,614 a year.
On top of the basic pay, the Taoiseach gets paid an additional €130,216 a year, bringing their salary to €243,895.
The Tánaiste, meanwhile, receives an additional €111,294 a year, while ministers get €92,938 and ministers of state get €45,846.
The Ceann Comhairle gets an extra allowance of €141,834, while the leas Ceann Comhairle gets €61,698.
Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission receive an additional €10,888 on top of their salary also.
Party whips receive additional allowances too, of between €21,773 and €3,439.
In the Seanad, the Cathaoirleach gets an allowance of €55,886, with the Leas-Cathaoirlach receiving €31,965, and the Seanad leader receiving €25,977.
All TDs get travel and accommodation allowances, as well as public representation allowances.
For the former, it depends on how far they have to travel to make it to and from Leinster House.
It ranges from €6,300 a year for Dublin-based TDs to €32,535 a year for those 360km or more from Leinster House. Ministers and the Ceann Comhairle cannot claim this allowance.
They must attend at least 120 days in the Dáil to claim the full allowance.
“At the end of the year, each member must certify that the amount paid to them was applied in respect of expenses incurred for the purpose specified in the regulations,” the Oireachtas guide says.
The Ceann Comhairle gets an annual overnight allowance of €14,715.
The public representation allowance, meanwhile, allows TDs to claim €20,350 (ministers can claim up to €16,000) and Senators can claim €12,225.
They must certify what they spend the money on and keep records and receipts as they may be audited.
This allowance can be spent on the likes of rent for an office, signage, stationary, leaflet distribution, room hire, attendance at conferences and secretarial support.
The Houses of the Oireachtas says termination and pension payments are payable to former TDs and senators subject to certain terms and conditions.
“Termination payments comprise a termination lump sum equivalent to approximately two months’ salary and a series of monthly termination payments, up to a maximum of 12 payments depending on service,” it says.
The lump sum is treated as redundancy for tax purposes.
Former members can also apply for a pension, which may include a lump sum and payments subject to terms and conditions.