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Starting your first job

  1. Overview
  2. What you should do
  3. How your tax is calculated
  4. Cumulative basis
  5. Week 1 basis
  6. Benefits from your employer

Week 1 basis

You may receive a Tax Credit Certificate (TCC) on the week 1 basis (also known as the ‘non-cumulative basis’). This means that your employer will deduct Income Tax (IT) from your pay on a week-to-week basis. Your yearly tax credits and rate bands are not backdated to the 1 January and do not accumulate for each pay period. Your employer cannot make any refunds of IT that may be due to you until a ‘cumulative’ TCC is issued.

You can contact Revenue to find out why you are on the week 1 basis, by:

If you are still on the week 1 basis at the end of the year, you must submit an Income Tax Return. You can find an Income Tax Return in ‘PAYE Services’ in myAccount. We will then review your tax position for the year.

We issue week 1 basis TTC for various reasons, for example where:

  • there is a large reduction in tax credits that may cause hardship
  • there is a lack of information about prior employments or earnings in the current tax year
  • people come from abroad to work in Ireland but we do not know how long they plan to stay in Ireland
  • people transfer their tax credits and rate band to their spouse or civil partner
  • employees do not want their new employer to know the details of their previous employments, pay and tax.
  • Example 1

    John is a PAYE employee. He is single, and these are his tax credits and rate band for 2020:

    Tax credits and rate bands

     

    		 Value
    Single Person’s Tax Credit

    €1,650
    PAYE Tax Credit

    €1,650
    Total tax credits

    €3,300 per year (€63.47 per week)
    Rate band

    €35,300 per year (€678.85 per week)

    John was given a tax credit certificate showing these tax credits and rate band and showing that Week 1 Basis applies. His employer was given a Revenue Payroll Notification (RPN) with the total amounts.

    John earns €600 per week. This is how his weekly tax is calculated: 

    John's weekly tax calculation for pay day 17 January 2020
      IncomeTaxExplanation
    Taxed at 20% €600 €120.00 Apply the standard rate of 20% up to the limit of the rate band

    (€678.85) on the RPN
    Taxed at 40% 0 0 As John’s income (€600) is less than his rate band (€678.85), he does not pay tax at the higher rate of 40% this week
    Gross tax   €120.00 Add the amount of tax at the standard rate to the amount of tax at the higher rate (if any)
    Less tax credits   (€63.47) Take away the tax credits as shown on the Tax Credit Certificate
    Tax payable   €56.53 Gross tax less tax credits.
    John's weekly tax calculation for pay day 24 January 2020
      IncomeTaxExplanation
    Taxed at 20% €600 €120.00 Apply the standard rate of 20% up to the limit of the rate band (€678.85) on the RPN
    Taxed at 40% 0 0 As John’s income (€600) is less than his rate band (€678.85), he does not pay tax at the higher rate of 40% this week
    Gross tax   €120.00 Add the amount of tax at the standard rate to the amount of tax at the higher rate (if any)
    Less tax credits   (€63.47) Take away the tax credits as shown on the Tax Credit Certificate
    Tax payable   €56.53 Gross tax less tax credits.

Next: Benefits from your employer

Published: 24 July 2020 Print this page

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