Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 December 2012
68. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Finance if he will quantify the amount of money that could be raised by persons paying Class S PRSI, if they were liable to the 3% universal social charge on income in excess of €100,000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57516/12]
View answerThe position is that individuals paying Class S PRSI are broadly self-employed income earners and proprietary directors. These individuals are already liable to a USC rate of 10% on income in excess of €100,000 per annum, being 3% higher from the USC rate applying to employees. I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that, assuming the enactment of changes announced in the 2013 Budget, the full year yield, estimated by reference to 2013 incomes, from increasing the existing rate of universal social charge by 3 percentage points to 13% on self-employed income earned in excess of €100,000 per annum would be of the order of €130 million.
The Universal Social Charge is an individualised charge and as such, the estimate of yield is based on individual incomes of more than €100,000. The estimated yield is based on confining the extension of the 3 percentage point rate increase to the portion of income which is in excess of €100,000, that is, the increase is not applied to the portion of total income earned up to €100,000. The figure is an estimate from the Revenue tax-forecasting model using actual data for the year 2010 adjusted as necessary for income and employment trends in the interim. It is, therefore, provisional and likely to be revised.
