Guide
PRSI classes explained: Class A, S, J, M and what they cover
Updated
The letter on your payslip decides both what is paid and what benefits your record buys. Most people are Class A; the exceptions matter.
The classes at a glance
- Class A
- The default for employees in industrial, commercial and service employment, and public servants recruited from April 1995. Full benefit cover: State Pension (Contributory), Jobseeker's, Illness, Maternity and Paternity Benefit, Invalidity Pension, Treatment Benefit and more.
- Class S
- Self-employed people and proprietary directors (broadly, those controlling 50% or more of the company). Charged at the same headline rate as the Class A employee rate (4.1% in the period to 30 September 2025), subject to a minimum annual payment; verify the current minimum on gov.ie. Covers pension and some benefits, but not Jobseeker's Benefit or Illness Benefit in the way Class A does.
- Class J
- Employees earning under €38 a week, and most employees over the State Pension age who no longer pay full PRSI. Employer pays a small rate (0.5% area; verify current) covering Occupational Injuries Benefit only.
- Class M
- People with no PRSI liability at all, for example employees under 16. Recorded for occupational injuries purposes where relevant.
- Classes B, C, D and H
- Legacy public service classes (civil servants, Gardai and officers recruited before April 1995, and the Defence Forces). Lower ('modified') rates, and correspondingly restricted benefit cover, notably around the State Pension (Contributory).
Why your class matters
PRSI class determines benefit entitlement years later: a proprietary director on Class S builds State Pension rights but not Jobseeker's Benefit; a pre-1995 public servant on Class D may need to examine mixed-insurance pension rules. Misclassification (a director paid as Class A when control makes them Class S, or vice versa) creates both refund claims and benefit gaps, and the Department's Scope section adjudicates disputed cases (Citizens Information: social insurance).
Subclasses on the payslip
Within Class A, payroll splits contributions into subclasses (AO, AX, AL, A1 and so on) by weekly earnings band; these decide whether the employee exemption, the tapered credit and the lower or higher employer rate apply in that week. Payroll software assigns them automatically; the SW14 guide on gov.ie lists the current bands, and it is the document to check whenever rates or thresholds change.
Class descriptions summarised from gov.ie and Citizens Information as at this page's updated date. Classification questions with money attached belong with an accountant or the Department's Scope section, not a summary page.