Niamh and John are in their 30s and live in Cork with their child.
John works in the IT sector and earns an annual salary of €47,000. He makes pension/AVC contributions of €340 per month. John’s employer pays his annual health insurance and his gym subscription. The total annual value of his benefits is €1,800.
Niamh works in the office of an insurance broker and earns €24,000 per annum. As their childcare costs €600 per month, Niamh is considering giving up her job to remain at home.
Both John and Niamh had hoped that the Minister would increase the standard rate band to take them out of the high tax bracket (now 41per cent), but unfortunately this had not happened. John had heard that the PRSI ceiling applicable to employees would increase by €2,200 and it seem this had come through in the Budget.
As their main hope was to get some form of tax relief for their childcare costs, they are somewhat disappointed with the Budget.
Nonetheless, they are pleased that in net cash terms, they will be better off by €163 a month next year.
| Description | 2006 | 2007 |
|---|---|---|
| Gross Salary (including BIK) | €6,067 | €6,067 |
| Taxable Income (including BIK) | €5,727 | €5,727 |
| Income tax | €692 | €569 |
| PRSI/levy | €300 | €260 |
| Net Cash (including rent) | €4,585 | €4,748 |
| Deductions (as % of gross salary) | €16,34 | €13,65 |
| Child benefit | €148 | €158 |
