PolicyEngine Ireland

PolicyEngine Ireland#

Welcome to the documentation for PolicyEngine Ireland, a comprehensive microsimulation model of the Irish tax and benefit system.

About#

PolicyEngine Ireland enables researchers, policymakers, and citizens to analyze the impacts of tax and benefit reforms in Ireland. The model implements Ireland’s complex fiscal system with high fidelity, including:

  • Income Tax: Progressive rates (20% standard, 40% higher) with various tax credits

  • Universal Social Charge (USC): Progressive surcharge on income

  • PRSI: Pay Related Social Insurance contributions for employees and employers

  • Social Protection: Jobseeker’s payments, State Pension, Child Benefit, and family supports

  • Housing Supports: Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) and related schemes

Key Features#

Production-Ready Model

PolicyEngine Ireland follows the same high-quality architecture as other PolicyEngine models, with comprehensive testing, official parameter sources, and rigorous validation.

  • EUR Currency: All calculations in Euro with official Irish government rates

  • Official Sources: Parameters sourced from Revenue.ie, Citizens Information, and Department of Social Protection

  • Entity Structure: Person, TaxUnit, BenefitUnit, Family, and Household entities

  • Test-Driven Development: Comprehensive test suite with policy scenario validation

  • Reform Modeling: Analyze impacts of policy changes on households and society

  • API Compatibility: Works with PolicyEngine’s web application and API

Quick Example#

from policyengine_ie import IrishTaxBenefitSystem
from policyengine_core.simulations import Simulation

# Create system and simulation
system = IrishTaxBenefitSystem()
simulation = Simulation(system=system)

# Add a person earning €50,000
simulation.add_person(
    person_id="person_1",
    age=35,
    employment_income=50000
)

# Calculate taxes and benefits
income_tax = simulation.calculate("income_tax", "2024")
usc = simulation.calculate("usc", "2024")
employee_prsi = simulation.calculate("employee_prsi", "2024")

print(f"Income Tax: €{income_tax['person_1']:.2f}")
print(f"USC: €{usc['person_1']:.2f}")  
print(f"Employee PRSI: €{employee_prsi['person_1']:.2f}")

System Coverage#

Taxes Implemented#

  • Income Tax with progressive rates and tax credits

  • Universal Social Charge (USC) with age and medical card exemptions

  • PRSI employee and employer contributions

  • VAT (parameter structure ready for implementation)

Benefits Implemented#

  • Child Benefit (universal payment with age-based rates)

  • Jobseeker’s Allowance (means-tested unemployment support)

  • State Pension (contributory and non-contributory)

  • Working Family Payment (in-work family support)

  • Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) - structure ready

Key Differentiators#

  • Irish Specificity: Captures unique aspects like USC, PRSI classes, and Irish benefit structure

  • County-Level Modeling: Support for 32 counties and local authority variations

  • Family Structure: Sophisticated modeling of Irish family assessment units

  • Means Testing: Accurate implementation of Irish social protection means tests

Getting Started#

Ready to start using PolicyEngine Ireland? Check out the installation guide and quickstart tutorial.

Government Sources#

All parameters are sourced from official Irish government websites:

PolicyEngine Ireland is part of the PolicyEngine ecosystem, making tax and benefit policy analysis accessible to everyone.

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