Taxation of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP)
Overview
Note
The PUP payment is now closed.
PUP was available to employees and the self-employed who lost their job on or after 13 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The PUP was paid by the Department of Social Protection (DSP). Payments from the DSP are taxable sources of income unless they are specifically exempt from tax.
PUP was a taxable payment. It was subject to Income Tax, but not Universal Social Charge (USC) or Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI).
How Revenue taxed your PUP payment depended on the year you received it. This section explains how Revenue taxed PUP payments and what you needed to do when your PUP payment ended.
Next: Taxation of PUP received in 2020