Parliamentary Standard Allowance (PSA)

The Parliamentary Standard Allowance is an annual allowance paid monthly in arrears to all Members. 

• View recent monthly statements of the PSA 
• View end-of-year statements for the PSA 
  The end-of-year statements are a record of the total PSA paid to each Member in a particular year, following the certification process.

The PSA comprises two distinct elements: (1) the Travel and Accommodation Allowance (TAA) and (2) the Public Representation Allowance (PRA). See below for more information on these. 

Travel and Accommodation Allowance (TAA)

This allowance is based on the distance from the Member’s normal place of residence to Leinster House and covers the costs associated with travel to and from Leinster House, overnights and, for TDs only, other travel expenses including constituency travel. Senators are paid a reduced amount as there are no payments for constituency travel. Distance, in this case, means distance from the Member’s normal place of residence to Leinster House by the shortest practicable route. On declaring this distance the Member is assigned to one of the bands in the table below.

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 TAA is calculated on the basis of 150 days attendance at Leinster House. However, Members must register their attendance in Leinster House for at least 120 days annually to retain the full allowance. A deduction of 1% of the TAA allowance is made for each day less than 120 days attended at the end of the year or relevant period. Where attendance recorded is less than the required number, the Member must repay the amount to be refunded within two months of the end of the year or of the relevant period.

Oireachtas Office Holders (excluding the Ceann Comhairle) are paid an allowance ranging from €6,300 per annum for the Dublin-based Office Holders to €32,535 per annum for those 360km or more from Leinster House. The Ceann Comhairle may avail of an annual overnight allowance of up to €14,715. The Leas Cheann Comhairle or Cathaoirleach may opt for payment of the overnight allowance only and apply for alternative travel arrangements with agreement of the Minister for Finance. Ministers, Ministers of State and the Ceann Comhairle are not entitled to claim the TAA.

In order to receive their TAA, members must personally record their attendance in Leinster House once daily at any time during the day or evening when Leinster House is open. This can be done on a time terminal or by signing the Daily Attendance Record.

• View members’ records of attendance for payment of TAA

The records published online show only the days recorded on the System for Recording Attendance (SRA). Figures are published one month in arrears. The figures remain provisional until completely verified at the end of the year. Records of individual Members can, under SI 84 of 2010, be reconciled up to 31 January for the previous year or within one month of the end of the relevant period. A Member who forgets his or her key fob or fails to record attendance on a day can provide evidence of attendance, which is reconciled on the system. The regulations also provide that attendance record may be reconciled, for the appropriate number of days, if the Member can show that their attendance was not recorded at Leinster House due to:

• Attendance abroad in the performance of his or her duties as a Member or as an Office Holder, or in the State, (otherwise than in Leinster House) as part of or on behalf of an Oireachtas Committee,
• Ill-health certified by a medical practitioner (the Member must declare that the absence is medically certified),
• Extraordinary circumstances, determined by the Ceann Comhairle or Cathaoirleach, as may be appropriate, to be good and sufficient and which could not have been foreseen by the Member. In this regard, a Member must apply to the Ceann Comhairle or Cathaoirleach as appropriate.

Public Representation Allowance (PRA)

This allowance is payable to all members and is fully vouched. The maximum yearly amounts which Members may receive are as follows:

Allowable Expenses

The categories of expenses allowable under the PRA vary according to role. See the table below for more information on eligibility to claim allowable expenses.

Declaring for the PRA

All Members must, one month before the 1st of January each year, specify the amount of PRA they wish to receive on a monthly basis. This amount is subject to the maximum yearly total as outlined above.

Certification of the PRA

Members must complete a Certification of Expenditure Form annually. This form certifies the amount spent and that it was properly spent as outlined in the regulations. If money has not been spent, it must be re-paid. If additional money has been spent, a top-up may be applied for (up to the maximum yearly total as outlined above).

Audit of PRA

All Members are eligible for selection for audit. At least 10% of Members may be chosen for audit. Audits are conducted by an independent auditor on an annual basis. As the expenses of any Members can be audited, Members must retain receipts, vouchers, proof of payment etc., for all expenditure under the PRA for a period of five years with the exception of the monthly amounts specified in respect of incidental expenditure.

• View Mazars' Auditor’s Reports for 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011