181. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the cost of abolishing the USC surcharge on self-employed income for those earning more than €100,000. [67033/26]

The 3% USC surcharge was introduced to the USC structure as a result of significant changes to PRSI in Finance Act 2011 in parallel with the introduction of the USC and the abolition of the Health and Income Levies. It was introduced as a counter-balancing measure to the increased PRSI charge on employment income due to the removal of the PRSI earnings ceiling for PAYE employees. If the surcharge was removed, it would be necessary to consider how the reduction in tax yield might be replaced with an alternative revenue stream.

I am advised by Revenue that the estimated full year cost of abolishing the 3% USC surcharge on non-PAYE incomes over €100,000 is €142 million. This cost is an estimate for 2027 based on Revenue’s micro-simulation tool, Tax Modeller, using actual data for the latest year available, currently 2024, adjusted for income and employment trends in the interim.