Rates last updated: 28 October 2026 · How we verify
Tax on Foreign Dividends and Interest in Ireland: the 33% Rule, USC and Foreign Tax Credits
If you moved to Ireland with a savings account back home, or you buy shares through a foreign broker, the interest and dividends don't stop at the border. Once you're Irish resident, Ireland taxes them, and no tax is deducted at source: no Irish bank deducts DIRT on a foreign account and no Irish company deducts withholding tax on a foreign dividend. You declare the income yourself on a tax return, and when you file makes a difference to the rate.
- Interest on a savings account in another EU or EEA country is taxed at 33%, the DIRT rate, as long as you declare it on a return filed on time.
- Outside the EU and EEA, UK included, it's the higher of 33% and your top rate, so 40% for most full-time earners.
- Foreign dividends are taxed at your top rate, 20% or 40%, plus USC, with a credit for tax withheld abroad under a treaty.
In our example, €500 of German interest and €2,000 of US dividends cost €725 of Irish tax on top of the €300 kept by the US.
How is interest on a foreign bank account taxed in Ireland?
- Interest from a bank elsewhere in the EU or EEA (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein included) is taxed at 33%, the DIRT rate, on a return filed on time, and at 40% if it isn't.
- Interest from outside the EU and EEA, including the UK, is taxed at the higher of 33% and your marginal rate if declared on time.
- That's 33% if all your income is within the 20% band and 40% if you pay the higher rate (Revenue).
| Where the account is | Irish tax on the interest |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 33% DIRT, deducted by the bank |
| Another EU/EEA country, return on time | 33% |
| Outside the EU/EEA (incl. UK), 20% taxpayer | 33% |
| Outside the EU/EEA (incl. UK), 40% taxpayer | 40% |
| Any foreign account, return late | 40% |
- Nobody deducts it for you. An Irish bank deducts DIRT at 33% before you see the interest. A bank in Germany, Italy or Poland doesn't deduct Irish tax, so the interest arrives gross and you declare it yourself on a tax return (Revenue).
- Filing on time keeps EU/EEA interest at 33%. Revenue's manual says EU/EEA interest is taxed at the DIRT rate only if it's "included in a return that is filed in a timely manner". Left off, or filed late, the same interest is taxed at 40% (Tax and Duty Manual 08-04-12).
- The UK counts as outside the EU and EEA. Interest on a UK savings account is taxed at the higher of 33% and your marginal rate. If you earn above the single standard rate cut-off of €44,000, that's 40% on every euro of UK interest.
- No USC on deposit interest. Revenue says USC doesn't apply to deposit interest, wherever the account is. It says PRSI may apply, which for employees mostly matters once your unearned income passes €5,000 a year (Revenue).
- Tax taken abroad can be credited. If the foreign bank withheld tax under a treaty, you credit it against the Irish tax. Revenue's own example credits 15% withheld in Portugal against 33% due in Ireland, leaving 18% to pay (Tax and Duty Manual 08-04-12).
How are foreign dividends taxed in Ireland?
- You pay income tax on the gross foreign dividend at your marginal rate, 20% or 40%, plus USC, and PRSI if your unearned income is over €5,000 a year.
- Tax withheld abroad under a treaty, such as 15% on US shares, comes off the Irish income tax.
- UK dividends are the exception: you're taxed on the net amount and get no credit (Revenue).
| What pays the dividend | How Ireland taxes it |
|---|---|
| Irish company | 20% or 40% on the gross, less 25% DWT already deducted |
| US company, W-8BEN on file | 20% or 40% on the gross, less 15% US tax |
| UK company | 20% or 40% on the net amount, no credit |
| Irish or EU-regulated ETF or fund | 38% in 2026, 35% from 2027 (announced), exit-tax regime |
- Gross, not what reached your account. If a US company pays you €1,000 and €150 is withheld, Ireland taxes the full €1,000 at your marginal rate and then credits the €150. Revenue: "You are liable to tax on the gross dividend at your marginal rate of tax" (Revenue).
- US shares: 15% with a W-8BEN. The Ireland–US treaty caps US tax on an individual's dividends at 15% of the gross (treaty, Article 10). Brokers apply it once you've filed a W-8BEN; that 15% is what you credit in Ireland.
- UK dividends: no credit at all. Revenue says no credit is given for UK tax on UK dividends: you declare the net amount received, converted to euro, and pay your marginal rate and USC on it (Revenue).
- Irish shares: 25% DWT up front. An Irish company deducts dividend withholding tax at 25%. You still declare the gross dividend: at 40% you owe another 15% plus USC, and if the DWT is more than your liability, Revenue refunds the difference (Revenue).
- ETF distributions aren't dividends here. A distribution from an Irish or EU-domiciled ETF falls under exit tax, 38% in 2026 and 35% from 1 January 2027 (announced in Budget 2027, subject to the Finance Bill), with no USC. Revenue no longer automatically treats US-domiciled ETFs like shares since 1 January 2022, so check those before you file. The detail is in our exit tax guide.
How does the foreign tax credit work?
- Where Ireland has a tax treaty with the country, tax withheld there under the treaty is credited against the Irish tax on the same income, so you don't pay twice (Revenue).
- The credit can't be more than the Irish tax on that income.
- Revenue only refunds Irish tax: anything withheld above the treaty rate is reclaimed from the foreign tax office (US treaty, Article 24).
- The treaty rate is the ceiling. The US treaty gives Ireland a credit for US tax charged "in accordance with" the treaty, which for dividends is 15% (Article 24). If a broker withheld more because the W-8BEN was missing, the extra goes back to the US tax office, not onto your Irish return.
- The credit doesn't create a refund. On €1,000 of US dividends at 20%, Irish tax is €200 and the US credit is €150, so you pay €50. If the foreign tax were higher than the Irish tax, the difference wouldn't come back from Revenue (Revenue).
- Your return asks about the treaty. Revenue's Form 11 guide says whether you get a credit or a deduction for foreign tax "depends on whether Ireland has a Double Taxation Agreement with the foreign State" (guide to the 2025 return). Our list of Ireland's tax treaties shows which countries have one in force.
- Keep the broker's tax statement. You claim the credit from the gross dividend and the foreign tax shown on the year-end statement from your broker or bank. Keep the year-end statement showing the gross amount and the foreign tax withheld, in case Revenue asks for it.
Worked example: German savings and US shares
- A single PAYE worker on €60,000 has €500 of German savings interest and €2,000 of US dividends.
- Irish tax for the year is €725: €165 on the interest at 33%, €500 on the dividends after the US credit, and €60 of USC.
- Filed late, the interest alone would cost €200 instead of €165.
Starting data (assumptions): Giulia is single, Irish resident and domiciled, and earns a salary of €60,000 in 2026, above the single standard rate cut-off of €44,000, so her extra income is taxed at 40%. She has €500 of interest on a German savings account, with no tax withheld, and €2,000 of gross dividends on US shares held through a broker with a W-8BEN, so 15% was withheld in the US. She has no other non-PAYE income and files her 2026 return on time.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| German interest at 33% | €500 × 33% = €165 |
| US dividends at 40% | €2,000 × 40% = €800 |
| Less US tax credit | €2,000 × 15% = −€300 |
| Income tax on dividends | €800 − €300 = €500 |
| USC on dividends at 3% | €2,000 × 3% = €60 |
| USC on interest | €0 |
| PRSI (unearned income under €5,000) | €0 |
| Irish tax due | €165 + €500 + €60 = €725 |
| Interest if filed late, at 40% | €500 × 40% = €200 |
USC is at 3% because her income for USC, €62,000 (the interest is exempt), stays inside the 3% band, which runs to €70,044 in 2026. Across both countries her dividends cost €300 + €560 = €860, or 43% of €2,000: her 40% income tax rate plus 3% USC.
If Giulia were also owed a refund, for example an unclaimed Rent Tax Credit or flat rate expense, the same return would set that against the €725. You can check what you're owed in the tax refund calculator.
Do you pay USC and PRSI on foreign investment income?
- USC applies to dividends, foreign or Irish, but not to deposit interest.
- PRSI applies to unearned income such as dividends and interest; for employees it applies once that income is over €5,000 a year.
- On 2026 income declared on a return the rate is 4.235%, the blended rate for the year (gov.ie).
- USC on dividends at your top band. Dividends are added to your income for USC, so for a salary between €28,700 and €70,044 in 2026 they cost 3% extra, and 8% above €70,044. Our USC guide has the bands.
- No USC on interest. Revenue says USC doesn't apply to deposit interest, whether the bank is Irish or foreign, so €1,000 of EU interest costs €330 if declared on time and nothing more (Revenue).
- PRSI above €5,000 of unearned income. If you're an employee and your rent, dividends and other unearned income are more than €5,000 a year, you pay PRSI on all of it. Below €5,000, as in Giulia's case, there's none. The same rule appears in our rental income guide.
What if you're not Irish-domiciled?
- If you're Irish resident but your domicile is still abroad, foreign interest and dividends are taxed in Ireland only on the amount you bring into Ireland (the remittance basis).
- Leave them in the foreign account and Ireland doesn't tax them; transfer them here and the rates above apply.
- Most people who moved here as adults are still domiciled abroad. Domicile is your permanent home, not your residence, so a Spanish or Brazilian worker living in Dublin for five years is usually Irish resident but not Irish domiciled.
- It only covers foreign income. Interest on an Irish account and dividends from Irish shares are taxed in full whatever your domicile, as is your salary for work done in Ireland.
- Mixed accounts are taxed income first. If your savings from before the move and new interest sit in the same foreign account, Revenue treats transfers to Ireland as income first. Our remittance basis guide shows how to keep them apart.
How to declare it: what Revenue asks
- If your taxable non-PAYE income is €5,000 or less (and €30,000 or less gross), you declare foreign interest and dividends on Form 12 in myAccount.
- Above that you register for self-assessment and file Form 11 on ROS.
- The 2025 Form 11 is due by 31 October 2026, or 18 November 2026 if you file and pay on ROS (Revenue).
- Add up the year in euro. Take the gross interest and gross dividends from each bank and broker's year-end statement, the foreign tax withheld, and convert each payment to euro. UK dividends go in at the net amount.
- Pick the form. Interest, dividends, side income and rent all count towards the €5,000 limit together. Under it, use Form 12 in myAccount (Revenue); over it, use Form 11. Our guides to Form 12 and Form 11 cover each step.
- Use the foreign income section. In myAccount, Revenue's route is "Review your tax for the previous 4 years", then the Income Tax Return, then Foreign Income, where EU deposit interest has its own line, separate from UK and other non-EU interest (Revenue).
- Enter the foreign tax separately. Each type of income has a line for the gross amount and a line for the foreign tax, so the credit is worked out for you. Check the result on your Statement of Liability before you pay.
- File by 31 October of the following year. That's the self-assessment deadline, and filing by then is the safe way to keep EU/EEA interest at 33%. A PAYE refund claim can go back four years, but a late return puts foreign interest at 40%.
Opening an account in a country that doesn't report to Revenue? Banks in countries under the CRS and FATCA exchange your account details with Revenue automatically. If you open an account in a country outside those systems, section 895 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 makes you a chargeable person for that year: you file a Form 11 and give the bank's name and address, the opening date, the first deposit and the name and address of any intermediary who helped open it. The exception for CRS and FATCA accounts doesn't help if you're already a chargeable person that year (Tax and Duty Manual 38-03-35).
Where do you start?
Download last year's statements from every foreign bank and broker and check whether you've declared them before. If you haven't, the next return is the place to put it right, with your PAYE refund claim alongside. Not sure whether Ireland taxes you at all? Start with the tax residence check.
Related reading
Questions we get asked
Do I pay tax in Ireland on interest from a foreign bank account?
Yes, if you're Irish resident and domiciled. Interest from another EU or EEA country is taxed at 33% if it's on a return filed on time and 40% if not. Interest from outside the EU and EEA, including the UK, is taxed at the higher of 33% and your marginal rate if returned on time, and 40% if late. No USC applies.
How are US dividends taxed in Ireland?
Ireland taxes the gross dividend at 20% or 40% plus USC, then credits the US tax withheld under the treaty, 15% with a W-8BEN. At 40% with 3% USC, €1,000 of US dividends costs €150 in the US and €280 in Ireland.
Can I claim a credit for UK tax on UK dividends?
No. Revenue gives no credit for UK tax on UK dividends: you declare the net amount you received, converted to euro, and pay your marginal rate and USC on it.
Can I use Form 12 for foreign dividends and interest?
Yes, if your taxable non-PAYE income, foreign interest and dividends included, is €5,000 or less and the gross is €30,000 or less. Above that you register for self-assessment and file Form 11, due by 31 October, or mid-November on ROS.
What happens if I never declared my foreign interest?
Revenue taxes foreign interest at 40% when it isn't returned on time, instead of the 33% DIRT rate for EU and EEA accounts. Revenue receives account details from CRS and FATCA countries automatically, so declare it on your next return.