Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS)

Overview

The Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) was an economy-wide enterprise support for eligible businesses in respect of eligible employees. Details of the EWSS were set out in Section 28B of the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (COVID-19) Act 2020. The scheme provided a flat-rate subsidy to qualifying employers based on:

  • the numbers of eligible employees on the employer’s payroll
  • and
  • gross pay to employees.

The EWSS replaced the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) from 1 September 2020. EWSS ended for most employers on 30 April 2022 and for everyone on 31 May 2022.

EWSS key features

  • Employers needed to have valid tax clearance to enter the EWSS. Employers needed to maintain this tax clearance for the duration of the scheme.
  • A reduced rate of employer’s Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) of 0.5% was charged on wages paid before 1 March 2022. This only applied to wages which were eligible for the subsidy payment.
  • Subsidy is based on an employee’s gross weekly wage, including notional pay, before deductions, and excluding non-taxable benefits.

Publication

Revenue publishes a list of the names and addresses of employers who received payments under scheme. This is done on a quarterly basis.

Next: Qualifying criteria for employers