DUBLIN, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Three foreign multinationals accounted for 46% of corporate tax paid in Ireland in 2024, up from 38% a year earlier, making the country reliant on a handful of companies for public revenue, its independent fiscal watchdog estimated on Thursday.
Irish corporate tax receipts have rocketed to 33 billion euros ($38.95 billion) a year in 2025 from less than 6 billion euros annually a decade ago, accounting for close to a third of all taxes collected. That has given Ireland the healthiest public finances in Europe, with its finance ministry estimating a budget surplus of 3.7% of national income last year.
Below are the main points from the research published by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council's (IFAC):
The share of corporate tax collected from the three highest paying companies has increased from 32% in 2017, IFAC said. It does not name individual companies.
The Irish Times reported on Thursday that the three companies were Apple AAPL.O, Microsoft MSFT.O and Eli Lilly LLY.N, citing company filings. Reuters could not verify that report. An IFAC spokesperson said the watchdog did not wish to comment on the identity of the companies.
Two tech companies have remained in the top three every year since 2017, while a U.S.-owned pharma group likely joined the list in 2023, IFAC said.
The doubling of overall corporation tax receipts from 2021 to 2024 was largely driven by increased payments from the top three payers, IFAC said.
"As corporation tax revenues become more concentrated, they also become more risky. That is, Irish tax revenues are more exposed to the fortunes of specific firms and the decisions they make," IFAC said.
With corporate tax revenues forecast by government to increase to 35 billion euros in 2026, receipts may become even more concentrated among the top firms, the watchdog's chair Seamus Coffey separately told RTE radio on Thursday.
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(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Susan Fenton)
((padraic.halpin@thomsonreuters.com; +353 1 500 1504; Reuters Messaging: padraic.halpin.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))